The Line
by Tiramisue
Summary: Two years after the adventure, a mysterious organization named the Mists of Gaia start sucking the life of the planet. Tifa meets a mysterious man and she finds out that a Cetra civilization exists and Aeris and Sephiroth can be revived.
1. The Lone Wolf

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, just the Cetra I made up.

The Line

Chapter One: Lone Wolf

Tifa breathed out a sigh of relief as the last customer left her bar, The Seventh Heaven. Only two years after the war with Sephiroth, a large change has occurred throughout Gaia. Midgar will become as it was when separated in villages rather than sectors. It was a very large not to mention expensive project, so most of the people are volunteers. As a result of the vast amount of people, business was booming.

As for her former comrades, things were not very different from the hustle and bustle of the busy bar.

Cloud used to live with Tifa and in fact organized the rebuilding of Midgar. Driven close to madness by the dreams of Aeris that plagued him every time he closed his eyes, he left one day. Tifa was, of course, heartbroken.

Barret is the president of the now rebuilt Corel. Since Cloud left Kalm, Barret is now the co-director of the rebuilding of Midgar along with Cid. Marlene stays with her daddy and visits Tifa every weekend.

Cid is the captain of Rocket Town and now a husband and father. He married Shera almost immediately after their adventure ended. Their twins, Cid Jr. and Sierra, turned one years old two weeks before. Shera is the head mechanic of the rebuilding of Midgar. Cid, who now leads the rebuilding, often seeks her advice for matters and never lets a building become inhabited without her A-OK.

Nanaki is the ambassador of Cosmo Canyon and is also at the building of Midgar. He designed the towns and helped with the naming. When he comes of age, he will become the Elder of Cosmo Canyon. A man named Kwanda fills in as the regent.

Yuffie did nothing short of disappear when the adventure ended. The only thing anyone knows is that she owns something of a Black Market of materia.

Vincent also disappeared, but not as completely as Cloud or Yuffie. He splits his time between helping the Turks with their missions and rebuilding. He is currently researching an organization called the Mists of Gaia.

Tifa looked at her two employees, Johnny and Melody. Those two always argue over the simplest things yet they remain good friends.

Johnny was a rather handsome man three years older than Tifa. He had long brown hair that he kept in a high ponytail and a left a few strands out that came around his face. He wore oval glasses that he would glare over at Melody when she made him angry. He was tall and had broad shoulders but a thin waist.

Melody is a very attractive girl Tifa's age. She has dark brown hair that reaches her shoulder blades. She usually keeps her hair back by putting it in a ponytail or up in some style. She has expressive light hazel eyes and is very outspoken. Tifa and she could pass as twins, and they sometimes lie about that. Melody and Tifa are in the same boat, so to speak. Both were in love with a childhood friend, but the love is unrequited. They always talk about life after the bar is closed.

Wind howled outside the bar and they heard the sound of thunder.

"Oh great, I didn't bring an umbrella," Johnny moaned. The look Melody gave him showed that she was about to start an argument. Tifa leaned against the bar and prepared to start watching one of their many humorous arguments.

"Well if you had watched or heard the news this morning maybe you would know the forecast! Oh wait, you boys can't wake up early enough to watch it."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Simple: men are lazy and must rely on women to make ends meet. But then you're allergic to us, right? You sure act like it."

"Excuse me? You're the one who's pining away for a guy that considers you just a friend. You're saying that men have to rely on women? Ha! The reason it seems like men rely on women is because that's the way you women want it. It's really the other way around. Women need men; men don't need women." Tifa saw that Melody had her feelings touched by that one.

"Oh? Is that the case? You know, I was just about to take you home using my umbrella, but I guess not." Tifa inwardly smiled. Melody decided to end the argument rather than take it to a different level.

"What? I'm sorry."

"That's what you call sucking up, Johnny," Tifa commented.

"Is not!"

"Is to now come on!" Melody went into the back and returned with a rather large umbrella. She obviously knew this would happen. They left.

Tifa started to go to the back storage room to check on the new deliveries that were made earlier that day when she heard a loud bang on the door. That was strange; Johnny lived ten minutes away at the rather slow pace he walked. She cracked the door open, which fell completely open with some sort of force and gasped.

A man leaned against the door and fell into her bar as the door opened. He was soaking wet and when she touched his arm, her hand went away with water mixed with blood.

Tifa crouched down next to the man and was about to put his right arm around her shoulders but he moaned in pain. His shoulder seemed to be dislocated. She put his left arm around her shoulders and slowly walked to the downstairs bathroom that was for private use only. She thought for a moment. She ran to the kitchen and got a pair of scissors. She cut his dark colored shirt. His chest had multiple cuts. She bit her bottom lip at her next obstacle. She turned the bathtub on and it started to fill with hot water. Tifa left to call Melody on the PHS.

"Hello?"

"Melody?"

"Tifa, what's wrong?"

"There's an injured man at my house. He is soaking, but I don't have any man's clothes."

"Do you want any of Johnny's? What do you think is wrong with him?"

"He seems to have a dislocated right shoulder and a lot of cuts. No normal person could survive what he's been through."

Melody thought about what she said. It all made sense. "Is he conscious?"

Tifa was suspicious; the amount of concern in Melody's voice changed drastically from none to a lot.

"No. Bring Johnny's loosest clothes."

"Alright. Check on him and I'll be back quickly." Melody hung up.

Tifa walked back to the bathroom and was amazed at what she saw. He had taken off his own pants and was sitting in the full bathtub. Tifa walked up to him slowly. He left his undergarments on, thank goodness.

Suddenly, he turned his head and looked at her. Tifa was shocked at the color of his eyes. They were green, like Aeris' and Sephiroth's.

"You must be my savior. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Marcus Xavier, but you should call me Marc." Marc looked at the color of the girl's eyes. She was a human.

"My name's Tifa Lockheart..." She paused.

"Is something wrong?" Marc asked.

"N-no." She was lying. "Are you still injured?"

"Yes, I know better to not to do anything to a dislocated joint." Marc looked around. "Where exactly am I?"

"You're in my bar, the Seventh Heaven, which is located in Kalm."

'Kalm, eh?' "So that makes you the martial artist that defeated the great Sephiroth, hmm?"

Tifa looked at Marc. He was looking at her as if he was analyzing her mind. "D-don't look at me like that... it's scary." Marc tossed his head back and laughed.

"I was right; it is the great Maverick," a voice said from the door. Tifa and Marc looked towards the door. Melody was standing in the doorway with a confused Johnny behind her. Tifa was also confused.

"Hello Melody. Is Miss Lockheart a friend of yours?"

"Yes. She's also my boss. So your shoulder is dislocated?" Melody walked up to the side of the tub. "Ouch. Tifa, hold his other shoulder right here while I reset this one." Tifa did as Melody said. Melody put his shoulder back in place with a disgusting pop.

Marc rubbed it. "Valeria would be proud." He leaned back and looked at Melody. "I bet you're wondering what I'm doing by myself in a place like this, right?"

"Exactly, but then I remember that you're Maverick. This sort of roguish behavior is in your nature."

"You are correct."

"Your dad's going to be angry when he finds out. You know that, don't you?"

"He already found out. As a matter of fact, he sent me."

Melody was clearly taken aback. "What?"

"I'm sure you've heard of the Mists of Gaia, have you not?"

"My friend, Vincent Valentine, is tracking them down, but I don't know why," Tifa said. Melody nodded.

"Valentine, eh? It should be easy for him, this tracking them down. My mother is the connection between the planet and us. It told her that the Mists of Gaia is trying to destroy it. I have to seek them out and find them so that they are destroyed...or at least their machines are destroyed."

"Machines? Are they like the Shinra?" Melody asked.

"Yes and no. The Mists is using a different technique. Their machines are so powerful that one of their machines could do the same amount of damage that five Shinra reactors can. They have about six of these machines."

"I'm so confused. What does that have to do with Vincent?" Tifa asked.

"Do you know what that claw of his is?"

"Is it something special?"

"It is a detector of the amount of lifeblood in the earth. He is half machine now. He has been ever since the Jenova incident."

"So he just has to see where the lifeblood is small?" Melody asked.

"Either that or he has to see where the lifeblood is gathering."

"How do you know all this?" Tifa asked. Marc looked at his hand.

"Hypnos Maximus," he said. A yellow beam hit Johnny and he collapsed. Marc snorted. "A spy..." He motioned for the girls to leave.

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"Do you know what that claw of his is?" I asked.

"Is it something special?" Tifa wondered. I looked at the man in the door. He was listening intently now. I figured I would tell them and then make him sleep.

"It is a detector of the amount of lifeblood in the earth. He is half machine now, ever since the Jenova incident." Tifa nodded. She knew about it.

"So he just has to see where the lifeblood is small?" Melody asked. I shook my head.

"Either that or he has to see where the lifeblood is gathering."

"How do you know all this?" Tifa inquired. I looked at my hand. The man was about to escape.

'Either now or never.' "Hypnos Maximus," I said. The yellow beam struck him and he collapsed. I snorted at the stupidity of the man. "A spy..." I motioned for the girls to leave.

I opened the pocket that was concealed in my shirt. I was surprised Tifa didn't notice it. I took out the small communiqué device. I typed in my father's code and waited.

"A development already?" he asked as his image appeared. I'm the spitting image of him with dark brown hair and green eyes.

"Three, actually. I've told Melody and Tifa Lockheart what's going on."

"Tifa Lockheart...that name sounds familiar."

"Of course. She was the lady who dispatched Sephiroth with Cloud Strife."

"Ah yes, continue."

"I didn't tell Tifa, and I think Melody didn't either, that we were Cetra."

"You will eventually."

"Probably. Second, Tifa revealed to my that Vincent Valentine was also searching for the Mists."

"Oh really? We may have to team up."

"My thoughts exactly. Third, I found a spy."

"Well then what are we waiting for? We'll be there immediately. Don't kill him. Anything else?"

"I found signs of a mutated Midgar Zolom in the marshes. A plant must be nearby. Also, bring some clothes." My father sighed and shook his head before logging off.

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"So you know Marc?" Tifa asked. Melody looked at Tifa.

"Of course. We grew up together. My father works for his." Melody thought for a moment. "You know, it's strange he told you to call him Marc. His mother the only one that calls him that. He doesn't like for anyone else to... he must have a thing for you." Melody winked. Tifa blushed lightly.

"W-why do you say that?"

"You think he's cute, don't cha? Don't worry, he's single. If it makes you feel better, I think he's cute too."

"So who's Valeria?" Melody smirked. Tifa was changing the subject.

"My sister. She's a doctor."

"I see..."

"You're hiding something, aren't you?" Tifa looked at Melody. She was giving Tifa a look as if she was looking inside or through her, like Marc did earlier.

"I'm wondering..." Marc entered the bar.

"Dad's coming."

"He is?" Melody asked, obviously surprised.

"Yes. I think the Council is coming with him."

"Crappity crap," Melody remarked.

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Maximus looked at the communiqué device. A spy, huh? Maximus turned around and held down a black button.

"All members of the Council, please report to the Congressional Hall. I repeat, all members of the Council to the Congressional Hall." Maximus removed his saber and scabbard from it's niche in his office. He walked to the elevator in the corner of his office. "Congressional Hall." It moved up to the eighth and last floor. The seven members of the Council arrived at the same time. They sat down at their places with Maximus at the head of the table.

"So what's this impromptu meeting about, sir?" Alfred asked.

"My son told me of some developments."

"Already?" Adrienne asked, shocked. The members of the council talked to each other.

"All of it is not, however, to our advantage." They quieted.

"What did he tell you?" Orion asked.

"First, the bad news," the Council held their breath, "he found a spy."

"A spy?" Uma asked.

"Yes, posing as an employee of Tifa Lockheart's."

"Tifa Lockheart as in the woman who defeated Sephiroth?" Cleo asked.

"Correct. Second, he told Miss Lockheart and Melody what the situation was. Miss Lockheart stated that Vincent Valentine was also on a mission to find the Mists of Gaia."

"You wish to call for an alliance?" Lena asked.

"Yes...if we could find Valentine. Third, and most important, my son found signs of a mutated Midgar Zolom. I do believe that he was attacked by it."

"Mutated? That means that a machine is nearby!" Warren exclaimed.

"Yes, but first things first. We eliminate the spy," Lena said. They all stood.

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	2. Secrets Revealed

Chapter Two: Secrets Revealed

Disclaimer: I do not own FF 7, just the Cetra that I made up.

A woman sat at a desk looking at a microscope. She had reddish brown hair held up with a simple white band and wore glasses over her hazel eyes. She was wearing a white lab coat over a magenta turtleneck sweater and cream-colored slacks. She heard her communiqué device beep. She opened it and rolled her eyes when she saw who it was.

"What do you want?" the woman demanded.

"You don't love me anymore?" the man wailed piteously.

"I never even liked you, much less loved you. I'm on the job now and I don't need you to interrupt me." Valeria started to close the device.

"Wait Valeria!"

"What?" Valeria was getting annoyed.

"Please, master healer, listen to what I have to say!"

"Fine. You'd better say it quickly before Bindi catches me. She reported me to Maximus for 'slacking off' the last time."

"Melody has been found."

"SAY WHAT? Tell me everything you know, NOW!" The man laughed. Valeria's reactions were so hilarious when concerning her younger sister.

"She was at the world of the humans."

"AND?"

"She befriended Tifa Lockheart, the busty woman who defeated Sephiroth."

"I don't need your lustful comments to be added in."

"Alright, alright. Maverick is over there now and there have been recent developments on the-you-know-what." the man lowered his voice.

"On what?"

"The Mists." Valeria nodded. "Apparently Lockheart doesn't know about Melody or us."

"I'm not surprised; Melody is good at keeping secrets."

"Too bad she's too hot-headed for my tastes."

"No girl wants to be part of 'your tastes.'" (At least a normal one.)

Valeria heard the door open behind her. She closed the communiqué and turned with one fluid motion, suspecting it was Bindi trying to pester her again.

Rather than the vivacious, trouble-making blonde, it was a tall, handsome male with dark hair and dark green eyes. He was Leon, Valeria's fiancé. "What were you doing?" the man asked.

"I was just replying to Peterson."

"That troublemaker?"

"Yeah. You know, that must be your secondary gift."

"What?"

"The ability to be able to work with that man and not die of sheer annoyance."

"No." he walked behind her and set his hands on her shoulders. He bent over and whispered, "My secondary talent is being able to calm the fiery temper of one of the Solheart sisters." Valeria smiled. It was true.

"Valeria, what are you doing?" they heard outside of the door. Leon quickly stood up straight.

"So how can you tell?" he asked. Bindi walked in. She grinned when she saw who was in the lab.

"Hello Leon, Valeria." Valeria glared at the two-faced wench. "Is something wrong?"

"No, not at all," Leon replied. "Why?"

"Valeria just looks angry, that's all." Valeria rolled her eyes quickly. Bindi was always, always out to get Leon.

"Anyway," Valeria said pointedly, "this one has these lines right here on the circles, whereas this one doesn't."

"Ah. Excellent observation, Doctor." Valeria smiled as Leon called her his nickname for her.

"Grr." Bindi growled in jealousy. She stormed out of the room.

"It seems you scored again." The communiqué device beeped.

Valeria was surprised when she saw who it was; Bindi couldn't have contacted Maximus that fast. "Yes Maximus?"

"Valeria, I'm sure you heard Melody was found."

"Yes, I did."

"I want you to go with me. I need a capable healer for this trip since I don't think Maverick will use his own magic. It would be too dangerous."

"What about Adrienne?"

"Some of the council needs to stay in case of emergency."

"That is true."

"I also need you to get Melody back in line. We don't need her to leave on us again. You do know what her secondary ability is, right?"

"No, she always kept that a secret."

"Then it is hers to reveal. I expect you to be in the Warp Room in five minutes."

"Yes sir." Valeria quickly gathered her things and ran to the room.

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"Where is she? The only thing she is on time for is medical emergencies!" Orion exclaimed. Lena and Uma (Lena's best friend) snickered. The door to the warp room opened and Valeria ran into it holding a small bag.

"Sorry, I had to return a specimen to the frozen room and..." Valeria quickly explained, but Maximus held his hand up.

"It's alright. We aren't in a rush. Alfred start the transporter." Alfred rapidly typed on a computer. It was connected to a round platform that was enclosed in glass that reached the ceiling of the large, amphitheater-like room.

"Coordinates 'Midgar Area, 6, 34.' Activated." Alfred typed a button and the glass tube filled up with a pale green concoction of liquid and gas.

"I'll be taking Valeria, Lena, and Warren. The rest is to lead this place, especially if we get attacked."

"Yes sir," the other council members said.

The people going stepped one at a time into the tube and vanished in the mixture. When the last left, Alfred pushed another button.

"Ten thousand gil says Melody will come back," Cleo proposed.

"You got yourself a deal," Orion replied. They shook hands.

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"This is it?" Valeria asked.

"Yes," Maximus replied.

"I heard it was very popular on my last reconnaissance mission," Andain commented.

"I'll bet it is. This Tifa woman is supposed to be a good cook slash bartender. Personally, the mere thought of being around alcohol all day every day is sickening," Lena commented.

Maximus stood next to the door and knocked on it. It was opened by Melody.

"Welcome to Tifa's Seventh Heaven," she said casually almost as if he was a customer. The group walked in. Lena looked around.

"The interior is rather nice for a place filled with drunks," she said. "Of course, that doesn't mean I like it." Tifa looked at Melody. The redhead of the group and Melody looked at each other and shook their heads inconspicuously.

"These are Maximus, Lena, Warren, and my sister, Valeria," Melody said while gesturing to each person.

It was obvious who was Marc's father. They looked exactly alike with dark brown hair and flashing green eyes. He had a sword sheath strapped onto a brown belt. The handle was that of a classic saber. It had some sort of symbol on the handle.

Lena was a tall, beautiful blonde woman that had the air of confidence similar to that of Scarlet's. She was wearing a black skirt and a pale green short-sleeved shirt. She seemed as if she was conceited.

Warren was tall man with brown hair that had bangs that covered his eyes. He had green eyes similar to those of Aeris' and they looked almost as if they were blood relatives (That is, however, impossible, Tifa thought).

"Where's Maverick?" Valeria asked. Melody pointed to a door casually while taking a long drink from a teacup.

"Hello, Valeria," Maverick said as soon as he heard the door open. He laughed at her facial expression.

"I am very, very disappointed in you," she commented as she feigned anger. "I know that you like working alone, and are good at it, but you have been close to death one too many times." She walked next to him and lowered her voice. "Why don't you use your healing magic, anyway?"

"Because," he simply stated.

"'Because'? That is the most ridiculous answer you've come up with. And how could you possibly speak out so much information to a spy?"

"I didn't know he was one until he was about to run away. I'm not like Lena; I can't sense who's on our side."

"That's true. I think that's the only reason why she's on the Council; she's a stuck-up, ornery person that close to no one could get along with. It seems like she's always trying to be number one." Maverick could just see the anger building up inside the redhead. (Which is a trait of her and her sister, Maverick mused.) "At least you didn't tell them about us."

"Okay. Time for the healing. I want to get back on the job as soon as possible."

"You are hopeless!" she exclaimed as she threw her arms up in the air. "Ameliorate Maximus!" A green light surrounded the room and vanished. Maverick flexed.

"Another thanks to the master doctor."

"You're like a little brother to me. I have to take care of you."

"That makes me feel so much better."

"Try not to get yourself hurt next time, you hear? I want to know how you got hurt this time. Not right now, but later when we get to headquarters. Get dressed in these clothes."

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"So the hero is returned back to full health," Lena commented. Maverick smirked.

"You could say that." Lena thought for a moment and as quick as lightning pulled a pistol out of Maverick's pocket.

"Ah ha. Here's the 'proper' way of interrogating a spy." She pointed the pistol (in a professional way) at Johnny. "Let's start with the introductions. My name is Lena. What is yours?"

"J-Jonathan, Jonathan Lyre."

"Good. You passed level one." Lena's green eyes shone with a deadly glimmer. "Level two: whom do you work for?" He was silent. "You don't want to answer?" Lena pointed her pistol at a 'certain area.' "I will ask it again: for whom do you work?"

"T-the Mists of Gaia, particularly under K-Kwanda."

"Kwanda what?"

"I don't know. Surnames are kept a secret in the Mists."

"Kwanda is the name of the Regent of Cosmo Canyon," Tifa threw in. Lena looked at her.

"Thank you for that info. We need to research this Kwanda. Level three: what do you know about the Mists that we don't?"

"Kwanda is the leader of the Espionage Division. They were not originally like the Shinra. They were more like a mercenary organization."

"And?"

"There are five districts: espionage, research, executive, reconnaissance, and labor. Each district has its own leader with an advisory council. You build up your rank, so to speak. There are two ways. You can start at labor, than reconnaissance, espionage, and then executive. Or you can start at labor and jump to research, which should really be called the scientific research district. It is very difficult to pass from rank to rank."

"How do you do it?"

"By taking a test in a way. It's not a written test, but more like a talent test. Had I gotten away, I may have been promoted to the executive district. That is the smallest and highest branch. The largest is, of course, labor. It's a lot like SOLDIER. First is the guard, than the SOLDIER level one through three, then it's the leader of the fields that meet with the ultimate leader."

"Who is the ultimate leader of the Mists of Gaia?"

"I'm not exactly sure what his name is. I don't think it's his real name. Was it Strife? Guile? Zeal? It's something like that. He would walk into a room and everyone could not look at him. He had blonde hair that was streaked with silver, and blue SOLDIER eyes. It's very freaky."

"Thank you for your information. The problem now is that we could not trust you." Lena was casually spinning the pistol while he explained things. She stopped and cocked the gun. "I'm not a big fan of spies, so I let them die agonizingly slow. But, we may need to milk you of more information because I know you're hiding something. For now, sweet dreams. Break Minimus!" Johnny's face turned chalk-white and he froze with a face of terror. "Petrified."

Author's Note: As far as the words after the spells go, I'm sure you could tell that it reflects the power of the spell. Here's a quick (and basic) explanation of "Secondary Skills." I'm sure you noticed that all Ancients have some sort of skill besides that of mostly healing magic. All of the Ancients have another proficiency, and that is their secondary skill. For instance, When Maverick said he wasn't like Lena, he meant that his skill was fighting rather than an uncanny ability to do something like read people's minds. She knows when they are sincere or not and whether someone is hiding things. The next chapter is when Tifa finds out about the Cetra- ness of the people. She suspects it already but is not 100 sure. Don't forget to review!


	3. The Ancients

Chapter Three: The Ancients

Disclaimer: I do not own the FF 7 characters or plot, just the Cetra I made up.

The night the visitors came, they put Johnny in the backroom. When everyone woke up, Lena announced, "The spy is dead." Sure enough, he was dead.

"How did he die?" Tifa asked.

"Don't know." Lena looked out of the bar window. "We should get to researching this Midgar Zolom."

"Too true, but first you have to sample Tifa's cooking," Melody commented. "The only stuff that's better is the stuff I was raised on."

"The stuff you're raised on is always the best, so it has an unfair advantage," Marc said.

"That's true. Well, let's wait on this food. It rained last night so I want to see Kalm in the rain." Lena opened the barrel of a revolver (I wonder where that came from, Tifa thought) and placed four bullets in. Lena stood up and walked towards the door. She opened it and she walked outside. Melody and Valeria looked at each other.

Everyone suddenly heard the squeal of tires driving fast and they saw Lena shoot the four bullets.

The previous night...

A woman's voice beeped over the intercom. "All espionage members that are part of the AC please report to Level B4. I repeat, all espionage members that are part of the AC please report to Level B4." Ten people, men and women, went to the elevators scattered throughout the corporate buildings and swiped their cards. The elevator came to life and a panel with numbers lit up.

"Welcome. Please select which floor you would like to enter." They all pushed B4 and went down.

A tall, muscular man was waiting for them. All around the man, scientists in white lab coats were walking by. He had short blonde hair and was wearing a dark blue jumpsuit. He walked to an empty lab and turned around.

"Please start your introductions," the man said. A short, dark-skinned man stepped up.

"I am Swift, leader of the Assassination Crew." He stepped back. Each person stepped up like Swift did and introduced him or herself. When the last person stepped back, Swift stepped up again. "All members are present or accounted for. What is our mission."

"It appears that there has been a leaky faucet." Swift shuddered as glowing blue Mako eyes stared at him as if it were his fault.

"Sir?" Swift asked. The blonde man turned around and faced the large computer screen on the other wall. The computer spoke.

"Espionage agent 15557, Jonathan Lyre, was sent to pose as the employee of any one of the people that defeated Sephiroth. He was an employee successfully for ten months, but an Ancient girl started to work there.

"Another Ancient somehow arrived there, and told some secrets of his own. Lyre foolishly tried to escape because he thought the man knew about him. Lyre told them almost all he knew about us, but he neglected to tell them about our most recent project. the Jenova Rebirth Project. An Ancient knows he's hiding something, but she doesn't know what." The computer stopped talking.

"Your assignment, or mission, is to assassinate Lyre before he tells them anything else. It doesn't matter what the method is. Let me tell you this to help you decide on the method. As a baby, Tifa Lockheart was a light sleeper. She was woken up by the slightest sounds.

"This proves to be to your disadvantage. She was, from what I know, a student of my old friend, Zangan. That means that she is a very good hand-to-hand fighter. He may have even taught her some of the assassin tricks that he knows. Don't do a method that will wake her up. But then, the art of spying and silent killing are your specialties, aren't they?" The Mako eyes again unnerved Swift.

"Mr. Strife, what do you suggest we use?" a woman asked.

"I don't know. Just don't use a gun. If an Ancient in that building has the ability to detect evil... be silent, fast, and above all else, don't let your mind wander on what your mission is."

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"What did you just shoot at?" Warren asked.

"Let us check." Everyone walked out of the bar and walked up to the silver car that was sideways as if it went out of control. Bullets punctured the two front wheels and the two men were killed, no doubt was left about what Lena shot at. They heard a muffled shout from the backseat. A girl sat up. Tifa gasped when she saw whom it was.

"Yuffie?" she whispered. As if she heard Tifa, Yuffie looked directly at her and looked down. Tifa opened the back door of the car and saw that Yuffie had her hands and feet bound. Tifa pulled the tape off of Yuffie's lips.

"Oh my gawd, what happened?" Yuffie cried out as soon as the tape was pulled off. "The men talked about an Ancient chick or something like that and then the car suddenly swerved in a circle."

"Ancient chick." Tifa murmured. She untied the ropes that bound Yuffie. Yuffie went out of the seat and was surprised at all the people.

"The Mists... are you okay?" Lena asked.

"Besides being sick from that swerve, I'm pretty much okay," Yuffie replied.

"What were those two men talking about?" Valeria asked.

"They said something like, 'Look, it's one of the Ancient girls.'"

Lena laughed.

"That's an interesting comment," Maverick stated.

"All of you are Ancients, aren't you?" Tifa asked.

"It's quite obvious, even if you don't have the Cetra trademark of green eyes, that you two, as well as those men, are human because you called us 'Ancients'. We call ourselves 'Cetra'," Lena said.

"We don't even have to check the men's eyes to see whether they are green. We need to check to see whether or not they are glowing with the Lifestream," Valeria said. She opened the front door on one side, and Lena took the other.

"This one isn't. What about yours?" Lena asked. Valeria opened one of the eyelids and gasped as she took a step back. She looked shocked and pointed at the man.

"What's wrong sis?" Melody asked. Warren looked at the man and stepped towards him.

"Is it Mako, or is it Jenova?" he asked.

"Neither." Valeria looked as if she was scared. "I think it's a mutated form of the Jenova cells. Kill it before it's too late!" she screamed. Everyone looked at her as if she was crazy. Warren looked at Maximus.

"Maybe you should do it," Warren said. Maximus opened the man's eyelids and took a step back. He shook his head as if to say, 'no good.'

"It already merged to him. What we need to do is take him to Uriah."

"Uriah? Where's that?" Yuffie asked, puzzled.

"It's our capitol and largest city. It is the city where the Council resides," Lena informed.

"Could I get my bag from their trunk?" Yuffie asked. Maximus nodded as he pulled out his communiqué. He flipped it open and typed in a number.

"Yes sir?" a voice came up.

"Albert, get ready to transport."

"Right away sir. Call when you are ready."

"What is this?" Yuffie exclaimed when the trunk popped open. Everyone went to look inside it.

"Is this some sort of...Jenova creation device?" Valeria asked. There was a small machine and several test tubes that had weird liquids with different levels of viscosity and colors. Yuffie got her bag and opened it. She looked inside it as if counting whatever was inside it and she put her hand in it and moved the contents.

Maximus took out the communiqué. "Albert, transport the car to the large lab room. Then you can transport us." Before everyone's eyes, the car turned into a green liquid and disappeared. Anyone who was looking out of their window would have seen a group of people turn into a green haze and vanish.

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"Mr. Strife, Mr. Sprite is here to see you," a secretary said.

"Send him in," Mr. Strife replied. The nervous, short leader of the researchers entered the room.

"Bad news, Mr. Strife...the car has been discovered and captured by the Ancients," the shaky voice said.

"Bad? Who said that was bad? That's exactly what I wanted to happen. They take the car and then Jenova multiplies and destroys. Don't worry, be happy."

Mr. Sprite left, sighed a sigh of relief, and wiped the sweat off of his brow.

A/n: What did you think of this chapter? If anyone's confused, they could write in their review what's confusing and I'll explain it in the next chapter.


	4. The Ancients Homeland

Chapter 4: The Ancients Homeland

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in Final Fantasy Cetra, just the characters I made up.

"Welcome back, sir," the members of the Council that remained said as the crew came into view.

"Hello, Valeria. Melody!" Cleo exclaimed. She looked at Orion pointedly and went over to hug her friends.

"Any more discoveries sir?" Albert asked.

"Well, all researchers have to get to the car inside the large lab. In the meantime, I want someone who knows this city very well to set up a tour for these two heroines," Maximus said.

"Melody knows the town," Cleo shot in. Maximus nodded.

"She could do it then." Maximus left the room.

"Ten thousand gil, Orion," Cleo grinned. Orion growled as he handed her a pouch.

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Valeria was back in her lab looking at a slide of one of the Jenova test tubes.

"Hello Valeria," the gentle, dulcet voice of Adrienne said. Valeria looked back at her.

"Hello, Adrienne. Would you like to see the Jenova?"

"I suppose." Adrienne looked through the microscope. "This looks exactly like blood cells."

"Yes, so I compared it to the blood of us Cetra." Valeria rapidly typed on a computer and a page came up. The page had the Cetra blood on one side and the Jenova sample on the other side. "They look very similar, but there is a difference when you go in closer."

Valeria pushed the mouse and both pictures started to zoom in. The Jenova sample's red blood cells had a dark red band on even the brightest cell.

"There are two questions that I need to ask Pearl about. The first one is what exactly is that band? The second, how do these get oxygen? Humans and Cetra get it through the lungs and the oxygen runs out after a while. These have probably been out of Jenova for at least two hours," Valeria stated.

"True, and maybe for two years. We don't know exactly what's going on. The difference between this sample and the sample in the crater is that the blood cell colors on the other Jenova were switched. The disks were white and the leukocytes were red."

"Well, the first thing we have to do is some tests to see what the difference between human and Cetra blood is. Then we can see which one Jenova resembles more."

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"...And this is the most important thing in our town. This is the holy Lifestream reaching out to us, and it is also the source of our powerful materia," Melody said. Tifa and Yuffie gasped as they saw the large Mako Fountain.

"It's so beautiful. I only saw a small one on Mt. Nibelheim before," Tifa commented breathlessly.

"I've never seen one ever, so you're lucky," Yuffie said, staring at the glowing fountain of glowing, green 'ice.'

Melody heard a beeping sound and she opened up her old communiqué. "Hey sis."

"Melody, are you done with your tour?" Valeria's voice asked.

"I'm at the fountain."

"Okay. That's a good stopping point if you want to stop now. When you come back, and don't hurry if you want to continue, bring the heroines to my lab so I can draw blood from them."

"Okay." Melody closed the communiqué. "They need us in the lab, but right now it's your thing. Do you want to stop now?"

"Sure. We could see the rest later," Tifa said.

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"So, which one of you is brave enough for the needle?" Adrienne said jokingly. Valeria laughed.

"This is Adrienne, my superior. Don't worry about her," Valeria lowered her voice to a mock whisper, "she's a little sick." The girls laughed.

"What are you two laughing about?" Bindi's voice came from the hallway. Valeria quickly picked up the slender needle and held it up as Bindi walked in.

"Us five are laughing because I'm trying to relax these girls before I draw their blood," Valeria said.

"She gets one, I get the other," Adrienne said.

"Don't worry; it doesn't hurt," Melody informed.

"Are you sure?" Yuffie asked fearfully.

"I'll count to ten and you just look straight," Adrienne said. "Watch." Adrienne walked up to Tifa. "Sit down, and just relax." Tifa sat down and Adrienne counted to ten slowly. "See? That's all there is to it."

"You're finished? I didn't even feel anything," Tifa remarked.

"Just because she didn't feel anything doesn't mean I won't!" Yuffie cried.

"What do you need their blood for, anyway?" Bindi asked.

"You're questioning not only the Head Researcher, but a member of the Council?" Adrienne demanded, suddenly appearing to have a lot of power. "It's official business, now go away before I report you to Maximus." Valeria and Melody grinned at Bindi, and Adrienne pretended not to notice.

"They are laughing!" Adrienne looked at Valeria and Melody, who stopped quickly before she saw them.

"I might as well report you for lying because they aren't."

"What?" Bindi sounded shocked.

"I said, go away," Adrienne's eyes flashed. Bindi looked down and left. Valeria and Melody laughed. "She deserved it."

"Lena needs it too," Melody said.

"On the contrary, Lena can be a good person at times. As for her," Adrienne pointed at the door, "she can't. She thinks she's high and mighty because she's Maximus' niece. Lena is high and mighty; thank goodness she didn't leave." The three Ancients were silent as if remembering something.

"Anyway, time to draw blood!" Valeria said cheerfully.

"That was a little too cheerful to me," Yuffie said dismally. Yuffie closed her eyes as Valeria sat on a stool next to her.

"All done!" Yuffie opened her eyes.

"Really?"

"Yeah." Valeria held up the needle. Sure enough it was filled with Yuffie's blood.

"Let's go eat before we test these," Adrienne commented. Valeria nodded in agreement.

"This is the HQ's cafeteria. We're actually going to lunch with the fighters. They're all friendly people," Valeria said.

"You're just saying that because your fiancée is in it," Melody shot out.

"No I'm not!" Valeria replied.

"Marc a.k.a. Maverick is also a member of the fighters. He should be in the far left corner, which so happens to be the dark and empty corner," Adrienne said, stopping further arguments.

"Is he one of those antisocial ones?" Yuffie asked. "You know, something like Cloud?"

"Yes, but the girls love him," Valeria informed. "He's very popular, and don't think he is amongst girls only. Men admire his fighting talent. Some, no most, of them are even jealous."

"Imagine, even Lena likes him," Melody declared. "He's just that way. He likes fighting alone, eating alone, working alone; he's just that kind of mysterious guy."

"When Leon gets promoted to the Council, Maverick will be promoted to the leader in his place," Valeria informed.

"Leon's her fiancée," Melody commented. "The fighting group learns how to use any weapon, how to improvise, escape techniques, espionage, hand-to- hand combat, et cetera, et cetera." The door opened and a tall man with dark brown hair and green eyes appeared.

"And here's the man himself. This is Leon, leader and main instructor of the fighters," Adrienne said.

"Oh? Are you eating now?" Leon asked.

"Yes," Valeria said quietly, looking down.

"Valeria's avoids public affection," Melody said. "You should see her when... never mind."

"When what?" Valeria asked suspiciously. "Were you spying on us?"

"No. Anyway, let's eat now. I'm hungry..." The girls walked into the cafeteria, which was very large.

"It's practically empty now, but when it's the researchers and doctors, every seat is used so we have to sit in the same seat every day. Look in that far corner right there," Adrienne pointed to the far left corner which was dark. A single man was sitting there with his feet on the table. "He's so aloof. "

"He should be sitting at that table in the middle. In every group, the leaders sit there," Valeria informed.

"Let's sit next to him and annoy him!" Melody exclaimed. The girls walked over and sat down around him in the round corner seat. "Hey Maverick! This is Yuffie. She was Tifa's cohort during Sephiroth."

"Hello."

"Hey!" a sunny voice called out. The group turned. "The name's Cleo, archer and gambler!"

"That's an interesting way of introducing yourself," Melody said. Cleo stood next to Melody and looked at Yuffie.

"I'm also a master pickpocket." She held up a wallet of money that was quite full.

"Hey!" Melody exclaimed. Everyone but Maverick laughed as Cleo and Valeria played a small game of catch.

"Okay, here you go." Cleo handed the wallet to Melody. She looked at Maverick. "Is she speaking to you?"

"She did right before they arrived. Do you know where Cloud is?" he asked looking at Tifa.

"No. He left one day. Why?" Tifa asked.

"For the past year or so, I've been spoken to by Aeris." Maverick stood up and walked to a door of the cafeteria located right next to his table. "Let me show you something."

Maverick had led them to his room. It was large and had an elevator in the corner. He led them into the elevator, which was also huge. Everyone entered it.

"Final Floor, please." The elevator moved down for a long time before stopping. They landed inside what seemed like a limestone cavern. "Unlike the Shinra, who were forced to build upward, we built downward; our base is only eight floors high. My elevator is the only one that can reach this far down. I didn't even know until she told me." He led them to a mako fountain.

"Do you know what she looked like?" Yuffie asked.

"Yes. I don't have to see her to know what she looked like. Her mother, Ifalnia, was the daughter of the Sage and his wife. You remember Warren right? He's the Sage's grandson."

"So they're siblings?" Yuffie asked.

"No, cousins. She looked, according to what she says, like her mother. Her mother had an identical twin sister, who is Warren's mother. He also looks like his mother."

Tifa nodded before saying, "I thought that he had a striking resemblance to Aeris when I first saw him. How do you speak to Aeris anyway?"

"One of two ways. She either speaks to me like the planet does, or I call out her name in this cavern. That's why I've been referring to her as 'she.' She is in the lifestream right under this area. Aeris!" he called out her name all of a sudden.

"Yes? I've been listening to your conversation to decide when to come in," Aeris' voice said.

"Aeris? Is it really you?" Tifa asked.

"Yes. Before we get off track, I need to inform you of three very important, not to mention dangerous, things. The first is that Jenova must be contained. You must not let her multiply because if she does, she will become a being of some sort. Don't think that she is just some other thing like Jenova Birth or Life. She will be a Death Angel."

"A Death Angel?" Cleo, Adrienne, and Valeria exclaimed.

"Yes. The second is that I'm sure you remember the incident that happened at the same time as my mother left."

"Yes, she left because of the attacks of the Iliad," Valeria said.

"The Iliad was a rebel group that rose against the main government of the Cetra's world. They appeared like ants do when you step on an anthill. Remember that last battle that won your father his fame?"

"Yes. Members of the Iliad vanished as if they had a spell cast upon them," Maverick stated.

"Correct. They just cast a spell and escaped. They are what is now the Mists of Gaia. A former SOLDIER is leading them. This ex-SOLDIER member, Peter Strife, is Cloud's father. He supposedly died when Cloud was three, but in reality he joined the Mists. He is a very good fighter; he trained Sephiroth and was a much better fighter than he. This, and the fact that he is Cloud's father, creates a dangerous foe. I believe he was brainwashed by someone else who is really the leader of the Mists."

"Finally, this man who is controlling Peter Strife is starting a project called the Jenova Rebirth Project. I'm not sure about the details; all I know is that it has ties with an ancient Cetra ritual that was used to revive the dead. You have to offer a sacrifice as great or greater than the Cetra that died. This may be used to revive Sephiroth."

"Revive Sephiroth?" everyone exclaimed.

"Yes. The combination of the real leader of the Mists, Peter Strife, and Sephiroth would make them nearly indestructible. First you need to find Cloud. He fell off a cliff and is being nursed by something even as we speak. He is located somewhere in the North, far away from your current location."

"'Current location'?" Yuffie asked.

"Yes. We are based in the northern snowfields," Adrienne informed.

"This is quite a revelation," Valeria commented. "Adrienne and I will stay here. Melody, you could go with Maverick and the heroines to look for Cloud." Valeria pulled out her communiqué.

"What are those?" Yuffie asked.

"A device used to communicate between Cetra. I don't know how they made these." She typed in a number.

"Yes, Valeria?" a man asked.

"I need four of the best silver chocobos."

"Right away." Valeria closed the communiqué. They boarded the elevator and went to the Chocobo stables.

"These are so cute!" Tifa exclaimed.

"Silver Chocobos are like golden ones, except they are more resistant to cold," Maverick said. "A silver chocobo could last for a day in the snow with no rest. A golden chocobo would already be a Popsicle."

"That's a rather morbid thought," Melody commented.

"Welcome to the club," Cleo stated.

A/N: Don't forget to review!


	5. A New Discovery

Chapter 5: A New Discovery

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, just the obviously made up characters.

A tall blonde man was walking to his room to get some rest when he felt a sharp pain through his body. He clutched his chest and fell to his knees. A scream was torn from his lips.

"Mr. Strife!" a man exclaimed. It was his second-in-command. "Pierce, help me take Mr. Strife to the infirmary!"

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"Don't forget to bundle up," Valeria cautioned. "Hypothermia is common in people that leave with too much confidence."

"Sis, it's okay. Don't worry about us," Melody reassured. "The planet blessed our land so it's beautiful and warm. It's not like the extremes."

"I was wondering why it was so warm during the tour!" Yuffie exclaimed. "You know when we saw the fountain, what did you mean by powerful materia?"

Melody paused and thought for a moment before answering. "What's the strongest summon materia you have?"

"Knights of the Round," both girls replied at the same time.

"Really?" Cleo asked as if it was a weak one. "Our strongest is Bahamut X."

"Correction, the strongest one that we can use is Bahamut X. The ultimate strongest is Uriah. That's the materia that this town is named after," Valeria informed.

"Wasn't it used during the war?" Melody asked.

"Yes, it was," a man's voice said. They turned around and saw Maximus. "Are you about to leave?"

"Yes, we are," Maverick replied.

"Before you leave, I want to give these heroines two of the new summon materia. They are Serenity, the Siren; and Wrath, the ghost of a warlord. Both are more powerful than the Knights of the Round and they have just been born of the two mastered ones. Also, here is map. Leon just recently got it."

"Is that where he was going?" Cleo asked. "I saw him leave early."

"Us too," Melody commented.

"Yes. He found the nomadic village of the...animals. They will depart from their current location when Cloud heals so you must hurry."

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"Chief, Suzuka has detected Cetra outside our village again," the chief's attendant informed. The chief nodded.

"Welcome them in. The Iliad would not venture into this area," the old beast nodded. The attendant bowed and left.

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"Is that it?" Melody asked.

"Most likely," Maverick replied. He reached into his Eskimo-like fur jacket and pulled out a pair of binoculars. He looked at the town. "The planet blessed this town also. The fierce wind doesn't seem to be striking the fire that's in the center of the town."

"May I take a look?" Tifa asked politely. He looked back at her.

"I'm not that much older than you, you know," he stated. "You don't have to be so formal." He held out the binoculars towards her. She looked through them at the village.

"How old are you anyway?" she asked.

"Twenty-six," he replied.

"You are? You're four years older than us?" Melody asked. He nodded. Tifa gasped and dropped the binoculars.

"What's wrong, Tifa?" Yuffie asked. Tifa was silent with shock.

"I thought he was extinct!" Tifa managed to gasp out.

"A lot of humans think that. We've been trying to track down their village for decades, from what I'm told," Maverick stated. "We used to live with them, and we taught them the language of the humans and things like that. They were something like a human's pet parrots. They left for some unknown reason; that page was torn out of the book I was reading on them."

"If that's what happened, how did Nanaki end up in Cosmo Canyon?" Tifa asked.

"I don't know it could have been a coup d'état or some other kind of a schism. What is it doing outside?" Maverick asked. Yuffie picked the binoculars up and looked through it.

"I don't know about you, but I don't see anything that looks like Nanaki," she said. She lowered the binoculars. "It looks really cozy." Maverick turned his head to the left.

"What was that sound?" he asked.

"Don't worry, Cetra male. I am not a threat to you," a very deep human-sounding voice said. A flame-colored beast revealed itself. It did something like smile. "You are very alert, just like our patient. You are here to get him, correct?"

"Yes. Is he completely nursed?" Tifa asked.

"Nursed of his wounds, yes, but he seems as if he is in a deep sleep. He woke briefly once and started screaming in agony while clutching his chest. It seemed almost as if he was suffering because of some inner pain or torture."

"Is he poisoned with mako again?" Yuffie asked.

"Our doctor doesn't think so. She thinks that only the Cetra could cure him of whatever malady he has. We were about to go to the Cetra person or people here before, but they were already gone."

"That must have been Leon," Melody said.

"It's very windy here. You should take your chocobos to our village. You could see your friend."

The beast led the four people to the town. Each tent inside the village had markings on both sides of the door. They stopped in front of one. Maverick ran his hand over the words.

"It's the village doctor. This must be her name right here." He gestured to the other side.

"You are correct. Your friend is in here." The beast left.

"Is that the language of the Ancients, well, Cetra?" Yuffie asked. Maverick nodded his head.

"Let's go inside."

It was larger on the inside than on the outside. It was like a large laboratory with a curtain covering the corner. Several oil lamps dimly lit the room.

"Are you here for the blonde man?" a female voice asked. A female beast came from behind the four people.

"Yes we are. Is he behind that curtain?" Tifa asked.

"Yes, he is." The four people walked to the curtain and opened it. Cloud lay on a mat on the ground and he was covered with a white sheet. He was sweating as if he was having a nightmare. He mumbled something.

"Is he okay?" Tifa asked.

"He has been like that...what!" As the doctor spoke, Cloud sat up and yelled. His mako eyes glowed in the darkness of the tent. Cloud said one word that shocked everyone.

"Jenova."

A/N: I was in the process of moving so it took a while for me to update this story. Thanks to all who reviewed and don't forget to review!


	6. A Mystical Malady and A Warrior's Lament

A/N: I am a mortal enemy of cliffhangers so I decided to post both chapters at the same time. It doesn't take me that long to write these chapters. It's probably because I don't make them the long ones where the bar on the side is about a millimeter long...

Chapter 6: A Mystical Malady and A Warrior's Lament

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, just the obviously invented characters.

"Cloud?" Tifa asked hesitantly. He turned his head towards her as if he was aware of her voice, but his eyes were blank.

"This may or may not be an improvement. He didn't wake up the two weeks he was here. When one has a mystical malady such as this, they have feverish dreams. He may be referring to the various specimens of Jenova he encountered earlier," the doctor commented.

"What do you mean by 'mystical malady'?" Melody asked.

"A mystical malady, in our people, means an illness of the mind. They are most of the time incurable and/or permanent. One of our people fell ill with a mystical malady, and he was pronounced cured. However, he still has dreams that are frightening, which is a sign of the mystical maladies."

"So basically, Cloud is doomed?" Yuffie asked.

"I would say there is a 95 percent chance of him being sick for the rest of his life."

"Only 5 percent chance of him being well?" Tifa asked in a hollow voice. She turned around and left the tent.

"Tifa!" Yuffie exclaimed. She started to go after Tifa, but Maverick stopped her.

"I'll handle this. You watch Cloud since there is nothing the doctor could do about him. Thank you for taking care of him until now," Maverick stated with a slight bow of his head. The doctor nodded and he left the tent after Tifa.

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Tifa didn't know where she was going. She just went wherever her feet took her. She entered some trees and was shocked. She expected to continue until she was surrounded by snow, but she emerged into a large canyon-like structure.

"So, you're attracted to it also?" a voice asked. She looked over to her left where the voice came from. She saw nothing. "I'm right here." She looked over to her right and gasped. Maverick was standing right next to her.

"Where exactly are we?" Tifa asked.

"Well, considering you can't see it from here, it's a good question. We are about twenty feet from a lifestream spring. It is a place where the lifestream emerged out of the ground. As a Cetra, I felt it even before we came. This is why it is such a warm place here."

"Like Mideel."

"Exactly."

"Are there any other hot spots?"

"A few. They aren't as warm as this all the time. The Crystal City is a great example of that."

"Crystal City?"

"Our old capitol, located in what humans call the City of the Ancients."

"The place where Aeris...?"

"Yes. It became abandoned like that about five years ago."

"What happened? Is it something about 'leaving'?"

"Yes. It started about seven years ago when my father became the leader of The Council... " Maverick crossed his arms and looked up at the sky.

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"Members of the Council, my life draws to a close. We need to appoint a new leader," an aged man informed as he stood up.

"Than choose me, father! I will follow you in your footsteps and lead us to glory," a young, robust man with flame colored hair proudly said as he stood up.

"No, not you. You would lead us to destruction. We do not need a war amongst our nation. We have an obligation as owners of this planet. We must stay alive. That is impossible with someone as hard-headed and obstinate like you." The man flushed and then sat down. "I believe we will be in a favorable condition if I appoint Maximus Xavier as supreme leader of the Council."

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A short while later...

"He thinks Maximus is a better leader? I cannot believe what I just heard!" the same young man stated.

"That is not what he said. He said the Crystal City will be destroyed if you decide to fight against our enemies...which would be inevitable," a dark haired man stated.

"At least Maximus will be a peacemaker," a woman chimed in. The group of four men turned around.

"Did I hear you correctly, Lena?" the young man asked.

"Yes, you did. I am one of the many people who prefer peace over war...that is, unless the enemy starts it."

"They did!" the man with the red hair exclaimed. She looked at him with a cold expression.

"Are any of our villages under siege?"

"Not yet."

"You say that as if you are the enemy."

"No. What I mean is that," he sighed. "Never mind."

"That's what I thought," Lena looked at her watch. "If you excuse me, I have to meet my fiancé in ten. Farewell."

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"That Lena thinks she's so smart," the red haired man huffed.

"She knows what's inside all of us. She has a lot of power, too. You must be weary of her," the dark haired man stated.

"She has a lot of power? I am the Council Leader's son!"

"Correction, you are the former Council Leader's son. Maximus is the new one, remember?"

"I'm going to leave this place, and fight our enemies my own way!"

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"So the man took some followers and left?"

"Yes. A lot more than you would think. Lena's fiancé went also, but she didn't want to live a life full of fear. What eventually happened was that Alex, her fiancé, was betrayed by the same people who made him lose his last spark of life."

"What was his last spark of life?"

"He was an orphan who originally was a pickpocket/thief. One day he attempted to steal from Lena's father but was caught by Lena, who was with her father. Lena and Alex ended up falling in love et cetera, et cetera. He ended up dying in her arms, and she's been the way she is now ever since. She used to be much nicer; she was very popular. I think she doesn't want to have a relationship with anyone again."

"How...sad..."

"Have you ever wondered what the Lifestream is like?" Maverick asked suddenly.

"I've been in it before."

"Well, I mean when you die and leave this world."

"Yes and no. I wonder what it's like for Aeris, but not myself. Did a loved one die?"

"'Some people who live deserve to die, and some people who die deserve to live.'" Maverick started to recite a poem.

This is the Warrior's Lament:

All around you,

People dying.

No one there, but yourself.

Havoc,

Commotion,

Calamity,

Horror,

This is the Warriors Lament.

The Behemoth watches as its fellows die,

Mother,

Father,

Sister,

Brother,

Friend...

This is the Warrior's Lament.

The Behemoth lunges and strikes,

Someone's father,

Someone's son,

Someone's brother...

It strikes again,

Someone's mother,

Someone's daughter,

Someone's sister...

This is the Warrior's Lament.

Sorrow,

Death,

Grievance...

The Behemoth looks at its hand,

Blood,

Shame,

The loss of innocence...

This is the Warrior's Lament.

A warrior is trained to kill or be killed.

Tragedy,

Macabre,

Sorrow...

This is the Warrior's Lament

Their life filled with memories,

Some gruesome, others cheerful.

Kill a brother,

Kill a father,

Kill a son,

Kill a sister,

Kill a mother,

Kill a daughter...

This is the Warrior's Lament.

"Who wrote that?" Tifa asked.

"My older sister. She was killed during the war. She wanted, like my father, peace among our nation. She wrote that as if she was talking about a monster, but she was actually referring to her fellow Cetra. She was full of angst, and she was a firm believer of 'The pen is mightier than the sword.' She wrote in a journal full of her poems, and I found it on her body. She was in the middle of another poem. She was against the war the whole time."

"I see. So you wonder about her?"

"Yes, we were very close. That poem puts a different perspective in fighting, doesn't it? It normally seems like the monsters aren't changed by a death, but this poem makes you think otherwise."

"It does," Tifa agreed.

"Do you know what it means when you are attracted to the lifestream like this?"

"No, what?"

"It means that you have a power of some sort. Usually the Cetra is attracted to the lifestream, or a person that was born with a gift, whether it is a good or bad one."

A/N: In addition to moving, I had to attend a wedding and I was gone for about a week! I'm also going to update this story slowly since I'll be going to High School on August 18. Please review.


	7. The Golden Rune

Disclaimer: If it sounds unfamiliar before you read this story, I made it up. I might have taken names of things, but I use them differently. Read and enjoy.

Chapter 7: The Golden Rune

"Where are they?" Yuffie asked.

"Lifestream," Melody said simply. Maverick and Tifa walked in.

"Let's take him. I think I know what will cure him, but we have to take them to Uriah," Maverick said. He nodded to Melody who turned to Cloud. She snapped her fingers and Cloud floated above the ground on a golden cloud.

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"Here it is The Golden Rune," a pleasantly smiling woman said, handing Maverick a book.

"The who?" Yuffie asked.

"The Golden Rune is one the most powerful materia. It supposedly has extreme healing magic capabilities," Maverick answered.

"What do you mean, 'supposedly'?" Yuffie asked.

"'Extreme'?" Tifa asked at the same time.

"The Golden Rune is a legend," Maverick addressed to Yuffie first, then Tifa, "and can resurrect humans."

"Wow, it sounds priceless," Yuffie commented. Maverick smirked.

"Not just anyone could use it; they have to be a descendant of the Lemii, a nearly extinct race."

"Nearly?" Tifa asked.

"Yes, there is no full-bloods left. We do know of, however, a half blood. She can sense its power, and it drives her mad sometimes. The Golden Rune may be resourceful, but you get a brand of vengeance for using it."

"That's a rather nasty name." Maverick nodded absently. He opened the large, dusty green book to the first page.

It showed a picture of a woman with wings. She was very beautiful, but appeared powerful. Her small eyes glared with a holy light and she held one arm in the air. Her wings were a dark color. A gold light burst forth from her hand.

"What are the Lemii?" Tifa asked.

"Archangels," Yuffie stated. Tifa looked at her in surprise. "They are in Wutanese Mythology as well. They are beautiful beings that were born from the stars. They are second, just below Leviathan."

"If you look at the picture, she's wearing a flowing robe. It is said that anyone who looks at the marks of vengeance will be cursed," Maverick explained.

"Oh..." Tifa remarked.

"You two could go and look around the city. I have a few things to do." Maverick said, looking at his watch. He picked up the book and walked out of a door.

"Hi Tifa, Yuffie," a voice behind them stated. They turned around. Adrienne and Valeria were with a woman.

The woman was about as tall as Cid was. Her dark skin seemed to be golden in color, which contrasted with her bluish-silver hair with length that rivaled the length of Tifa's hair. She had sharp, clear-blue eyes that show she was not an Ancient. She was wearing a loose, long, white robe that had a slit on one side that reached her thigh. She was also wearing sandals.

"Hello," the woman had a deep voice that sounded almost musical.

"This is Pearl. Pearl, this is Tifa Lockheart and this is Yuffie Kisaragi, but you already knew that, didn't you?" Valeria asked.

"Did she hear about us or something?" Yuffie asked.

"No," Pearl's voice echoed. Tifa looked around suspiciously. "You are very smart, Miss Lockheart. I am telepathic, as you think." Tifa heard soft laughter. "I don't read thoughts often, so you should not worry."

"What are you?" Tifa asked.

"Huh?" Yuffie asked. "That's a weird question."

"It was only you that heard me, I can target minds. Don't tell Yuffie though," Pearl stated. Tifa smiled and Pearl winked at her. "I am a half- Cetra, half-Sparxian."

"A who?" Yuffie asked. Pearl looked as though she understood.

"You must not know about the other side of the world." Tifa closed her eyes suddenly and saw a sphere. "Midgar was right here." A white dot flashed on a large landmass. "You are right here." The sphere rotated to the northern continent and a dot flashed at the very center. "I come from the desert country, out here." The sphere turned and a gold island flashed. Tifa's eyes opened.

"Is something wrong Tifa?" Yuffie asked. Tifa shook her head.

"What is it like on the other side?" Tifa asked.

"So different, yet so similar. People where I am from have long life, we might even be considered immortal."

"So how old are you?" Yuffie asked.

"Oh, about 2000 years old or so. I am known as the Healing Sage."

"Let's go to the lab, I want to show you something," Valeria commented. She led the way to the lab.

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"These are blood sample photographs of the blood we are researching." Everyone was sitting down as Valeria stood next to a computer. "Here is Cetra blood." Everyone saw bright red disks. "And human blood. As you can see, there is little difference. On the other hand, here is Jenova1's blood." Everyone saw white disks. "The cause is unknown. Jenova2's blood." Everyone saw bright red disks with a dark red band. "Cause is again unknown. We have a contaminated car in Sector Alpha 3 of the research department, department 709."  
"It's blood is different from any living creature's," Melody mused to herself. "Could it be that it's undead?" The presentation ended.

"Well..." Tifa started. But then she shook her head as if dismissing the idea.

"No, share your ideas," Pearl said.

"A long time ago, when it was just Cloud, Barret, and myself, we saw Jenova inside a tank in the Shinra Base. She had no head." Yuffie made a sound of disgust.

"Do you know the story of Jenova?" Pearl asked. Tifa and Yuffie shook their heads.

Long, long ago, the Ancients separated into two parts with separate beliefs. One group consisted of the believers of holy, the ones that this city represents. The other was the ones who worship the Black Materia, followers of death, and the demon overlords amongst other things. Eventually, a beautiful priestess took over the black materia followers. Her name was Evanesce, a word that means to vanish. She had a twin, one who excelled in the dark arts. Her name was Moloch.

She practiced black magic none of the others would even dare try. Evanesce thought she should stop while she was still lucky. Moloch did not heed her elder sister's warnings, and her luck vanished. She had symptoms that even I, as the healing sage, would have thought was death. She lived, however, by feeding off of souls that wandered the Planet, those condemned to live a life on the earth as damned souls. She was feared when living, even more feared after her pronounced death.

She was killed by concentrating Lifestream to form dark weapons instantaneously. With this magic, she could kill anyone just by raising her arm. One weapon, now known as the Scythe of Death, refused to listen and beheaded its creator. She now became known as Jenova, Messenger of Death, the wise, undead One.

"She's an Ancient?" Tifa asked.

"Yes. An extremely dangerous one at that," Pearl said.

"What happened to Evanesce?" Yuffie asked.

"Another smart one," Pearl thought to Melody and Valeria. They both laughed. "She's right there." Yuffie and Tifa gasped as they noticed the outline of a person.

"Whoa! I didn't see her," Melody said, voicing exactly what they were thinking. Tifa felt a smile under the hood.

"It is the Cloak of Mists," a low, calm voice stated. She stood up and lowered her hood. The woman was beautiful. She had long dark hair and an innocent yet wise face. Her eyes and lips were the color of red wine. She was deathly pale and looked as calm as her voice was. She had a pair of earrings in each ear. Three were garnet studs, but one of the ones on her right earlobe was an inch long, crimson, spike-looking gem. "I am called Evanesce after all."

"You are also an Ancient?" Yuffie asked.

"More or less," Evanesce drawled.

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"Mr. Strife?" a woman asked. Peter opened his eyes and saw a blurry face.

"Aya?" he asked softly. He thought he recognized the short blonde hair.

"Excuse me?" the woman asked. Peter's eyes snapped into focus and he shook his head. It was Denicia, his head torture master/ warden/ nurse.

"Nothing, nothing at all."

"Are you alright? Your men are worried about you."

"Yes I am." Peter thought to his dream and shook his head. He felt like he was drowning in a bright green liquid, and some blue eyes not unlike his own mako blue eyes burned through him.

"Are you sure?" Denicia asked. Suddenly she started to scream in agony. Peter watched with horror as Denicia had two holes burned into her body by some kind of blue laser.

"Peter, stop it," a soft voice said. Peter recognized the voice immediately. The sounds of Denicia's own torture vanished.

"Aya?" he asked softly.

"Stop it, Peter. You're hurting our baby. Let's meet at our secret place."

"Okay," Peter thought. He closed his eyes and waited for the cold wind that would lead him to his love.

A/N: It will be difficult to post because I have hard teachers at school that overloads me with homework. If there is a long delay, it's because of Ms. Johnwitch.


	8. Introduction to the Twin Dragons

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters that you know of from the game. I own everything else.

Chapter 8: Introduction to the Twin Dragons

Tifa poked her head out of the door of her and Yuffie's room. She looked both ways of the dimly lit hall and walked down the hall. She pinned herself to the wall and looked carefully around the corner. She waited until someone went inside his room and walked around the corner, repeating this until she came upon a special door she made sure to memorize. She knocked on the door and waited for an answer.

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Maverick looked up from his copy of the script of Pandora's Box and looked up when he heard the knock on his door. "Come in, it's open." He smirked when he saw Tifa walk in. 'This has got to be interesting,' he thought.

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When Tifa heard his voice, she entered the door. She looked back at it as it closed automatically. She looked around the room. Contrary to what it looked like a few days earlier, it was a very beautiful sight. It was dimly lit by candles and looked warm and cozy. She looked at Maverick. He was sitting cross-legged on the pillows of his bed with some kind of book in his hand. She stood by the door awkwardly, wondering what possessed her to sneak here. She was reminded of herself several years ago, back when she sneaked out of her house to meet Cloud.

"Welcome to my humble abode. Do you need anything? Or perhaps there is something you wish to discuss? You can take a seat on this bed, or is it too intimate for you?" Tifa sat about a foot away from Maverick mimicking his position on the large bed. It was a very comfortable bed, and she liked how it sunk slightly under her weight.

"First of all, you don't need to be so formal with me. Just because I am a guest doesn't mean that I need to have such formalities that you have given me. I'm not far away from you age, either."

"True, true. I am a slang kind of person myself." Tifa let a smile creep slowly onto her face. "Secondly?"

"Underneath my optimistic nature, I am very curious. What better place to vent out some of that curiosity than on the most secretive man in this place?" Maverick smiled back at her.

"Starting from when?"

"From birth until now."

"Okay. I was born Marcus Xavier, son of Maximus and Laura Xavier. I'm the second of three children. My older sister, Sonya, was a great poet. In fact, she was excellent in all the arts. She was the one that wrote the Warrior's Lament. We do an annual showing of one of her plays, Pandora's Box. My younger sister, Penelope, also died during the war. We were all very close."

"How sad...I know it bothers you, but tell me about this war. I hear a lot of people here get introspective because of this war."

"Remember what I told you about Lena? What happened was there was a conflict on who should be the leader of the Council. The Council leader position was usually a heredity thing. However, the former leader passed it onto my father. It was really a war fueled by jealousy. A real shame it is, that so many people lost their lives for such an unholy purpose. My father ended up winning, of course, and secured his position.

"As I said, my sisters and I were very close. When they both died, not even a week apart, I was destroyed on the inside. I kept myself a secret, a treasure waiting to be found. For letting me tell you all of this I thank you. I never felt so relieved before..." Both of them paused, looking at each other's eyes. "Anyway, as I was saying, that is why I am so mysterious to people."

"How did your sisters die?" Tifa asked softly. She knew what she felt when she looked into his eyes, and she could see that he felt the same way.

"Sonya died of magic. You may think that your human materia magic is strong, but there is magic out there that is stronger. A Cetra's powers can be many times stronger than your strongest materia. Their natural powers may be over elements, or they can summon something. My natural powers are healing powers and control over wind. That is why my ears are very keen. My mother is half-Cetra, half-forest nymph. My sister was, as a result, a fire sprite. Of course, being a nymph doesn't include males. She has a vulnerability to water and wind strengthens fire so that it doesn't go out. If I were there sooner..."

"Marc, stop it. Even though I was not there, you and I both know that it was not fault. Don't torture yourself like that," Tifa replied, first being strong with her feelings and then fading into a whisper. Maverick smirked.

"You do know that I don't let just anyone call me Marc, right?" Tifa smirked back. She knew exactly what he meant. She moved so that she was sitting next to him. She moved her face inches from his, her wine colored eyes looking into his green ones.

"Just your precious mama, right?" she asked huskily. He laughed, which had a nice sound that seemed to vibrate the air in the whole room.

"With my sisters, but now you're included in that very selective group."

Maverick stood up and walked up to a silver box that had two dragons embossed on it. He opened it and came back, holding a glowing crimson ball in one hand and a pair of earrings in his other hand. He walked back to the bed. "My younger sister was a Shine Princess. She held control over the Twin Dragons, Kreutz and Jess. This is their vessel into this world. The Shine Princess had to wear these earrings and call an incantation." Maverick set the materia onto the bed in front of Tifa and took one earring in each one of his hands. "Kreutz was the blue dragon of water, and Jess was the red dragon of fire." As he said their names, he held up the corresponding earring. One earring was a blue dragon, and the other earring was a red dragon. "Dragons are crafty, and half the time the ones they possess succumb to their evil wishes. That is how my sister died. She told me when she died to give these to someone I thought was strong enough to become a Shine Princess." He held the earrings out to Tifa.

"Me?"

"Yes. I think that you are strong enough to handle them. As a matter of fact, you should test them out now. If you think that they might be manipulating you, take them off straight away."

"Okay, I'll try." She put the blue earring on her right earlobe and the red earring on her left earlobe and closed her eyes.

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"Jess! Jess!" the blue dragon exclaimed, desperately trying to wake his twin up.

"What do you want, Kreutz?" Jess asked sleepily.

"We have a new mistress!" Kreutz exclaimed happily. Jess woke up immediately.

"A new mistress? We should be nice to this one; she must have put the earrings on right if you sensed her instead of me."

"Let's go meet her!"

"How do you know it's a she?"

"I know what a woman feels like, Jess." Kreutz sounded mad.

"'Feels like'? You've never touched one. We sense, not touch."

"I meant feels like as in sense language. Wait up Jess!" Jess started to fly off to the Wellspring of the Earth to speak to this woman.

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"Do you feel anything?" Maverick asked.

"No." Tifa opened her eyes. Suddenly, she heard a pair of voices echoing in her head.

"Hello, new mistress," a gruff voice said.

"We're the Twin Dragons," a friendlier, goofy voice said.

"I'm Jess."

"And I'm Kreutz." Tifa thought about what they might look like.

"You want to know what we look like, eh?" Jess asked. "You can try a preliminary summon with our materia."

"Don't listen to Jess, new mistress. It takes a long time to get used to summoning us." Kreutz let spill out. Tifa felt Kreutz wince as Jess growled. "Great, you can feel us already. She may be a better mistress than Miss Xavier."

"We can read your mind, so don't be like the crazy Miss Xavier and speak to us with your mouth. We can understand either, but think not talk."

"Silence is golden."

'My name is Tifa Lockheart.' Tifa thought.

"She catches on quick, doesn't she?" Jess asked. Tifa felt Kreutz nod in agreement. "I may decide to be nice to you after all, Miss Lockheart."

'Just call me Tifa.'

"Are they talking to you?" Maverick asked. Tifa nodded.

"Silence isn't that golden," Kreutz joked. Tifa laughed. Maverick smirked.

"I hear they are quite the pranksters."

"Awwwww... he actually complemented us," Jess commented sarcastically.

"As you can tell, we did not get along with Miss Xavier," Kreutz admitted sheepishly.

"Come on, Kreutz. The whole family is cuckoo!"

'Don't talk about them that way,' Tifa scolded.

"Seriously, you didn't know them. The son and older daughter were okay, but the younger daughter..." Kreutz trailed off.

'What was wrong with her?' Tifa asked.

"Stubborn, jealous... she was the whole enchilada, so to speak. Now I'm lazy, and I'll admit it. If you, as in the Mistress, call me for no reason, I will stop listening," Jess said frankly.

"He will stop, and if he doesn't go, I don't go. Ask the son..." Kreutz started.

'Maverick,' Tifa informed.

"Right. Ask Maverick to take us to the highest mountain that is warm, please Tifa."

"We'll begin your training there," Jess said.


	9. Mountain Training

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Squaresoft owns most of the characters, but the scene of the finding mind energy is sort of from DBZ, with my own little twist. I'm not too sure who owns them...

A/N: From now on, Maverick will be known as Marc by Tifa and as Maverick by everyone else. I will use his name interchangeably. This chapter could have been connected to the previous chapter, but it would have been too long and the bar on the side would have been a millimeter long.

Chapter 9: Mountain Training

The next day, Marc led Tifa to the tallest warm mountain as the dragons requested.

"Nice," Jess commented when they finally reached the peak after a rather dangerous climb.

"Yeah, awesome view. Now, where do we begin Jess?" Kreutz asked.

"I think we should start with Hologram. Now grasp the materia in your right hand." Tifa took the materia from a travel pack she brought and held it in her right hand. "Now close your eyes, since it's easier to concentrate that way."

"Jess?" Kreutz timidly asked.

"What?"

"Shouldn't we tell her what Hologram does?"

"You can; you're better at explaining the magic than I am."

"Right. Hologram is a spell that fools all organic matter into believing we are there. The Golden Rule of Life is to believe that your eyes fool you at all times. That way, you can always be suspicious of these things. Hologram is a basic spell, but it has the same visual effects as if you summoned us. It fools people into thinking we're there, but we're not."

'How do you want me to focus?' Tifa asked.

"Your mind energy," Jess simply stated.

"I think she needs to find her mind energy first. Ask Mr. Xavier how to," Kreutz said.

"Marc?" Tifa asked.

"Yes?"

"Could you help me find my mind energy?" Tifa asked.

"Sure. Come over here and sit down." Marc sat down on a patch of grass. He motioned for her to sit across from him. "Your mind or mental energy is one of the three types of energies in your body. The three types of energy are physical, mental, and elemental. First of all, let me make this place a protected one." Marc closed his eyes for about ten seconds. Tifa immediately felt the wind cease and there was not a sound. "I've enclosed us in something like a bubble. Just do your thing, and we'll go down the mountain."

Thirty minutes later...

"I can't do it, Marc," Tifa said, leaning back on her hands and sighing. She tried to find her mental energy herself but she failed time after time.

"Shh... It's never easy to find out about oneself." Marc got up and sat behind her. "Listen, here's what we'll do. We'll take a break and I'm gonna give you a massage." Before Tifa could say anything, she felt his strong hands on her tense shoulders and he began giving her the best massage she had for a long time. She had a flashback of her training with Zangan.

_"Great Tifa!" Zangan commented as Tifa landed a swift kick on Tom, her training partner. Tom fell on the ground, groaning._

_"Yay! Two for Tifa, zero for Tom Thumb!" Tifa exclaimed happily. Tom jumped up and shot her an angry look._

_"Careful, Thomas. One more and you owe her a good massage. If you don't give her one, you will be answering to ME." Tifa giggled, but Zangan was serious. Tom began fighting aggressively, but was still no match for Tifa. He was forced to give her a massage, and he certainly gave a good one._

"What are you thinking about, Tifa?" Marc asked, his soft whisper tickling her ear.

"Oh, the last massage I had. You give very good ones, Marc."

"Thank you, Tifa. A nickname Melody gave me was the Healer, since I gave good massages and have powers associated with healing. As a matter of fact, I could help you with your training."

"How?"

"Like this." Tifa felt a warmth surround her body and sighed at how it seemed to warm her soul.

"What was that?" Tifa asked, surprised at how breathless she sounded. Behind her, she felt him smile.

"That was a nifty spell of mine that clears the mind of any distracting thought. It's a real pity I can't use it on myself." Tifa laughed. "Before you try your mind energy again, I have a confession to make. I wanted to pick fun at you to see how you tried to find it without guidance."

"You mean it isn't random?" Tifa fumed.

"Of course not. Finding your energy of any sort is all just a matter of knowing where to look." He moved so that he was sitting in front of her. He tilted his head sideways, looking at her with that haunting stare of his that seemed to look through her.

'Do you know what he's doing?' Tifa asked the dragons.

"He's sensing you. When he opens up a port like that, you could speak telepathically with him," Kreutz explained, "and he could sense your mood...he could also locate where to find energies. He can't, however, hear us. That's only for you, mistress."

'Marc?' Tifa asked him.

'Yeah, I could hear you. Ah ha! Eureka!' Maverick thought. Tifa felt the port close and saw the look on her face disappear. "Tifa, look at the part of your mind where your knowledge of magic is."

Tifa closed her eyes and concentrated on that part of her mind. She felt her hands feel warm and then cold and she opened her eyes and looked down at her hands. A small blue fireball was in her hands.

'The blue flame,' Marc thought with shock. 'So, her elemental and mental energy are the same, huh? She does not know how important this is. I knew she was the one, I just knew it. I can't tell her now, though. I'll tell her when she could summon the dragons.'

"I did it!" Tifa exclaimed. Marc gave her a warm smile.

"Great!" Kreutz exclaimed happily. "Focus that, just a little, and picture this symbol." Tifa's eyes closed involuntarily and she saw a red and blue yin yang symbol, except this one did not have the colored dots in the large colored fields. She did as they asked. Her eyes snapped open when she felt something leave her mind. Standing before her were two semi-transparent dragons that stood on their hind legs.

The first thing that caught her mind was a metallic red color. This dragon, which she somehow knew was Jess, seemed stocky and strong. She could see that he had a fierce personality and she assumed he had a fierce temper. This dragon was about two feet taller than the other dragon.

The second dragon was a brilliant metallic shade of dark blue. Kreutz was much more lustrous than his counterpart, but was smaller in both height and breadth. For some reason, she could feel he was not as filled with anger like Jess. He was looking down curiously at a hole he was beginning to dig with one of his toes. He looked up at her and she gasped at his eye color. It was more brilliant against his dark blue than Jess' dull red, but it was the same color nevertheless. Their eyes were bright, bright green, and they reminded Tifa of Sephiroth's eyes except for one thing: the pupil. The pupils of their eyes were black slits rather than round like Sephiroth's were.

This thought broke her concentration and the dragons as well as the hole disappeared.

"Bravo!" Kreutz cheered. He stepped back from the Wellspring, preventing Tifa from hearing his next words. "She is a quick learner, huh?" Jess hesitated and then stepped back.

"Kreutz, if you had been paying attention, you would notice that she is a quick learner because she was infused with our elements before we showed up."

"You mean..."

"Yes," Jess cut off. "She is the female part of the Holy Angel. She probably has powers that she doesn't even know she has."

"How do you know?"

"Because," Jess explained impatiently, "her mind energy is the blue flame. If Mr. Xavier's hidden mind energy turns out to be the thunder orb, then they are both halves of the Holy Angel, thus causing them to be the most powerful duo in this whole entire world."

"You mean..."

"Yes, that's exactly what I mean." Jess gave a crafty laugh.

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Yuffie walked out of her shower. She looked at the clock on the wall. It was four hours since she woke up, and Tifa was still gone. Sure Yuffie woke up late but still. That still didn't give Tifa the right to disappear. Right after Yuffie was ready to grab a bite to eat, Tifa walked in laughing. She waved goodbye to someone in the hall and pushed her hair back from her face as she closed the door.

The first thing Yuffie noticed was the different colored earrings that Tifa was wearing. The second was the pouch on her hip. It was a materia pouch.

"Nice earrings," Yuffie commented. Tifa looked at her, seemingly confused for a moment. She suddenly realized what she was talking about and answered.

"They were a gift."

"From whom?" Yuffie asked, suspicious of the different colors. Tifa sighed.

'See you boys later,' Tifa thought.

"Bye-bye Tifa!" Kreutz exclaimed.

"Hey, you're a quick learner. What more do we need of a mistress?" Jess asked. "You're one of the best, if not the best, mistresses we have ever had."

'Thanks Jess.'

"No problem. We'll be watching you." Tifa laughed out loud.

"What's so funny? And why do you have a materia pouch on you?" Yuffie asked. Tifa took her earrings off and set them on the nightstand next to her bed. Yuffie continued her bombardment of questions. "Who were you with? Could you believe I was actually worried?" Tifa turned around with a warm smile on her face.

"Marc," she sighed dreamily. Yuffie paused.

"Oh no; who or what transformed Tifa into a lovesick puppy?" Tifa laughed as she took her pouch off and set it next to her bed on the floor gently.

"Maverick, I should say." Yuffie understood suddenly.

"Oh... so you have a new flame, eh?"

"Actually, Yuffie, I'm exhausted. I'll tell you all when I wake up."

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"So this is the mighty Cloud Strife, hmm?" Melody asked. Valeria nodded.

"Rather frail-looking, if you ask me." Melody laughed. "Actually, in his state we all would probably look the same way. He has been out of it for at least two weeks. His muscles are weakening as time flies by."

"Miss Solheart," a voice came from the door. Melody and Valeria turned around.

Melody recognized the voice as one of the Ghost Captains. As she expected, they saw nothing, but felt something.

"Valeria, you stay here. I'll go see what's going on." Valeria nodded and turned back to the medical instruments. Melody felt bad for lying to her sister, but it was the only way she would keep her secret.

A/N: Are the dragons lying to Tifa? Updates will most likely slow after this, so please be patient readers!


	10. Ghost Ship

Disclaimer: If it's recognizable now, there is a 75 chance I don't own it  
.  
A/N: This chapter isn't exactly towards the real story line (Mists of Gaia); it's a peek into the past for Peter and Melody.

Chapter 10: Ghost Ship

Melody looked at the old shipwreck on the River Styx that ran through the Crystal City. She smirked as she wondered what they were calling her here for. She made her way down and flicked back her dark brown hair before knocking on a door using a special knock. The door swung open and she walked in, knowing exactly what to expect. She took the customary five steps to correspond with the knock and the whole ship lit up in flickering green candlelight. She smirked again when she saw Jimmy, an old friend of hers.

"Hello Jimmy. What's up?" Jimmy returned her smirk.

"Just returning for a visit, friend." Jimmy was certainly different from what he looked like only two years ago, right before she left to live in the world of humans.

Two years ago, he was a very handsome guy. He was a foot taller than Melody, standing at 6'4". He had dark brown hair that was long enough to cover his beautiful amber colored eyes. He was very strong, and was in fact Leon's half-brother, so he was also a good fighter. He was a comedian at times, and was very serious at other times.

Now he was a mere shadow of his former self. He was weakened drastically, and his skin slacked and he looked decades older than he was. Of course, this was not enhanced by the sickly pale-green color of his skin. Rather than have legs, he slowly tapered into nothingness as one would look down. He was a Ghost Captain.

"You're not here for a visit. You would not have gone home and risked..." Melody paused, thinking of the word.

"Exposure," Jimmy provided, smiling.

"Yes, you would not have gone home and risked exposure if you did not have anything really, really important to say."

"You know, I think that we had some sort of psychic connection. You know me so well it's not even funny sometimes." Melody smiled. It was true with her as well. They could finish each other's sentences and he could come up with words she couldn't think of.

"Jimmy, I know what you're trying to do. I want you to stop it."

"Okay, okay. I'll stop procrastinating." Jimmy sighed, and she realized that he must feel as old as he looks. "You know Tifa Lockheart right? Never mind; don't answer. It was a dumb question. She is one half of the Holy Angel." Melody gasped.

"Holy Angel? The blue flame half?"

"Yes. We sensed it once she found out she had it."

The first people the Planet gave birth to were the Angels, one for each element. When all their powers were manifested, the Holy Angel was formed. She was the most powerful of all, and she could create and destroy life. Most species wanted to use her to their advantage, but she was too pure to fall for such things. One day, an alliance of creatures wanting to use her broke her into two pieces, one for each half of the world. When the two parts joined again, she would bestow eternity to the holders, a concept that no one understands for sure...

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"There he is, Peter," Aya whispered. Peter looked ahead at his only son. "He looks just like you." They walked up to him together, Peter slightly hesitant. They were facing his back. Aya gave Peter's hand a reassuring squeeze and he took a deep breath.

"C-Cloud?" Peter asked hesitantly. Cloud slowly turned around to face his father. Aya was right, he did look like his father. Peter held his arms open. Cloud reluctantly went into his father's embrace.

"F-father..." Cloud stuttered. Cloud heard a sniffle and looked at his mother to see tears of joy streaming down her face. They all heard a high pitched giggle behind them. Peter let go of his son and they all looked back. The giggle belonged to a little girl, one about age three or four. "Who...?"

"Daddy!" the girl exclaimed. Peter beamed and scooped his daughter into his arms.

"Maggie!" he commented with a smile. He turned towards Cloud. "Maggie, this is brother Cloud."

"Yay! Brother Cloud, brother Cloud!" Cloud smiled despite himself.

'Children can be so innocent...' Cloud thought wistfully. "Who...?"

"She was three when she died of sudden mako poisoning. A month later and she would have been four in time for her brother's birth, two months after her death."

"No wonder she looks so young..." Cloud looked on as Maggie pointed towards him.

"SOLDIER, SOLDIER. Daddy says they're bad."

Cloud smiled ruefully. Too bad his father wasn't there while he grew up. But then again, if he hadn't, none of Cloud's life would have happened.

"Don't point Maggie," Peter said firmly. Maggie immediately dropped her hand.

"Sorry, daddy. Sorry, brother Cloud," Maggie apologized. Peter looked at Cloud in his eyes and set Maggie on the ground.

"Go play with mommy for awhile; I need to speak to brother Cloud." Maggie ran off with her mother.

"If you're a SOLDIER, why do you tell her that they're bad?" Cloud asked. Although it was sort of hard to recognize with the shining of his eyes, Cloud could see something between sadness and anger in his father's eyes.

"Because, I knew what they were up to." Peter looked into the bright blue utopian sky above him before explaining.

Although it seems like a fantasy now, the sky used to be this beautiful in untouched areas. Contrary to most people that live in Nibelhiem, I was not born there. I was originally from Junon Harbor. Back in the day until I was ten years old, it was very beautiful. It was the real definition of paradise. When I was ten, the Shinra SOLDIERS took over Junon. They killed my parents for some reason I don't know of, and they took me as their next recruit. I was a quick learner, partially because I routinely went camping in the woods behind Junon with my father and two best friends. My father would help us kill enemies and train us to become very good with all sorts of weapons. My personal favorite: the long sword.

I was the original teacher of Sephiroth, and I was also a friend of Vincent Valentine, one I know you have at least met. Most of the time, I was the leader of the Turks, much like the late Tseng was. One day, a mission went awry, and Mr. Shinra went berserk and said that me and my fellow Turks died.

We were on a mission to find and capture an Ancient by the name of Ifalnia. She escaped our grasp several times, and when we finally found her, she was mortally wounded. I used the last of our potions, because we were in the extreme cold of the Northern Limits. For some reason, they thought I had a child with her or something like that. There were several rumors to what actually happened...

We nearly died during that mission, and when we finally delivered our "package," it was already thought that some monsters that you should be happy you never met killed us. If I knew what they were going to do with Ifalnia, we would have not delivered her at all. We were unaware that there was a time limit, and apparently we overdid the limit.

"You see, the Shinra just use you to capitalize. They will constantly use and reuse their men. I must admit that I found myself at the mercy of a Lepord, an evil being that is very formidable. He is the one commanding the Mists of Gaia, my unintentional replica of Shinra Inc. and SOLDIER. The Planet should be respected, not harmed as it has been for the past two generations."


	11. The Sea Sprite's Enchantments

Disclaimer: I own what's mine, not Squaresoft's.

Chapter 11: The Sea Sprite's Enchantments

"Hey sis," Melody said. Valeria turned from her seat at a computer.

"Well?" Valeria asked. Melody sighed, and Valeria recognized that sigh. "Melody, what happened?"

Melody was surprised at the amount of concern in her true half-sister's voice, but her pride let Valeria from seeing her shock. "I heard from a source that Tifa is Her."

"Who?" Valeria asked, knowing that Melody wouldn't tell her the source, but would tell who She is. Melody dragged a chair so that she would be sitting next to her sister.

"The Blue Flame," Melody whispered in Valeria's ear. Valeria felt her blood chill and goose bumps formed all along her arms. Valeria wrestled for the right word.

"W-what?" They heard a moan from Cloud and both rushed to the side of his bed, one to treat, and one to watch. He stopped moving and settled again into restless sleep.

"He's getting tortured while he is asleep," Melody whispered. Valeria looked at her younger sister. Melody sighed. "I guess it's time to tell you, Valeria." Melody looked up at Valeria. "Valeria, I know that you know we have different mothers. While you're a full-blood Cetra, I'm not." Valeria looked at Melody, wondering what exactly the significance of this point was. The Cetra responsible for saving them all was a half-blood as well. Melody took a deep breath. "My mother was a Lemii." Valeria's eyes widened.

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"You never did finish your tour of our fair city, did you?" Maverick asked Yuffie. He was in her and Tifa's room, talking to her while Tifa slept peacefully. Yuffie heard a constant beeping and saw Maverick pull out his communiqué. He opened it.

"Maverick, you need to get to the entrance of the base, NOW!"

"What's wrong?" Maverick asked. He had never seen Valeria so distressed.

"Melody, she's going after it." Maverick's eyes widened. It looked like Valeria was running through the halls. "I already have the Invisible Ship ready for us. Get Yuffie and Tifa out here ASAP!" Maverick nodded in understanding and closed the communiqué.

"Tifa, Tifa." Maverick said gently, while shaking her.

"Mmm..." Tifa seemed unfocused. "Marc?"

"Yes, it's me. Listen to me, we need to go and help Melody, ok?"

"Is she in trouble?" Tifa asked, waking up immediately. Maverick hesitated, thinking.

"Yes, she is. Let's go!" Tifa grabbed her earrings and her bag and Yuffie ran after the two.

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Melody could feel the Golden Rune to the West. She led her favorite Golden Chocobo, Nellie, to the top of a hill where they stopped. Melody closed her eyes, and held her hand in the air. She hummed a long, multi toned note, trying to discern where exactly it was hidden. She smiled as she found out exactly where it was. She knew that Valeria was following her, but even she wouldn't be able to stop her now. Nellie took off with blazing speed, and Melody smirked, thinking that Jimmy taught Nellie well.

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Valeria was pacing back and forth on the outside deck of Leon's greatest achievement, the Invisible Ship.

"Valeria?" Leon asked uncertainly. She never paced.

"What?" she snapped. She felt bad when she saw the hurt look on his face. She sighed and wrapped him in her warm embrace. "I'm sorry, love, I just don't want to lose her again." He returned it almost immediately.

"I know, I know. It's just that I hate it when you feel bad." Valeria sighed.

"I'm sorry Leon. I know that this is a time when I need to be strong, but I can't."

"Yes, but that's when I need to be strong." He looked at her hazel eyes. "Tell me what happened, please."

"Well, Melody never told me what her secondary gift was. She told me today what it was when she saw how much Cloud Strife was tortured in his sleep."

"What is it, her gift I mean?"

"Remember I told you that we were only half-sisters? It turns out that her mother is a Lemii, you know, an Archangel."

"An archangel? So...the Golden Rune..." Valeria nodded. "Wow...that's a big secret."

"It's not as bad as the other one she told me."

"What would that be?"

Valeria stood on her tiptoes and whispered in Leon's ear. "Tifa has the blue flame."

"I can't decide which one is bigger secret."

"Yo, lovebirds, we need you on the bridge," a worker commented. Valeria reluctantly broke her hold on Leon and grasped his hand in hers.

"Let's go, love," Valeria said with a smile. Leon smiled back.

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Marc sat in a chair, thinking. He could feel that something was wrong, very wrong. He looked back as he heard the door open. It was only Tifa.

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

"I don't know yet."

"Ah, one of those feelings?" she asked knowingly.

"Exactly."

"How long have you known Melody?"

"We're childhood friends. Well, not that kind of childhood friend you're thinking about, one of those friends forever types. What makes you ask?"

"I think that she knew it was you when I called her the very first time we met. She sounded concerned."

"Did she?" Marc asked, seemingly amused.

"Is that a joke to you?"

"No, it's just that she's usually the one that has concern piled up on her, in particular by Valeria. Even though they are just two years apart, it seems like Valeria is the mother of a five-year-old kid that is trapped in a 22-year-old body." Tifa smiled, thinking about how much Melody loved acting like a little kid.

'More like a brat,' Tifa thought with a smile.

"What are you thinking?" Marc asked.

"I'm just thinking about Melody."

Marc and Tifa looked at the door when they heard a loud scream.

"It's coming from the bridge. Come on!" Marc leapt up out of his seat and dashed out of the room, Tifa following him.

As they were sprinting to the bridge, Marc hesitated. Tifa nearly ran into him and looked at his eyes. They were looking at the ground. Tifa followed them and a look of shock came across her face. A sticky, white and clear substance coated the double doors to the bridge as well as the ground in front of the doors. Marc bent down and touched it. Tifa made a face as a clear trail followed his fingers.

"Saline... Tifa, do not believe what your eyes tell you when we go in there. Understand?" Tifa nodded, not knowing exactly what he meant. He pulled a door open and held it open for Tifa. She walked in the short hall and emerged in...

Tifa gasped. She felt Marc stop right behind her.

"What is it? What do you see?"

"I'm in...Nibelheim's Mako Reactor." Tifa took a few steps forward.

"Teef! Is that really you?" Tifa looked to the side. She almost fainted when she saw who it was.

"D-daddy?" she whispered.

"Tifa, don't believe it. Resist it." Marc's voice was fading.

"Marc...?" Tifa turned around. He was gone. Tifa closed her eyes, willing the image away. She opened her eyes. Her dad was having convulsions and fell to the ground with a seizure. Tifa blinked slowly and her father was replaced with one of the people she recognized from the ship. The background faded away and she saw the bridge covered in what Marc called saline. People seemed to be drowning in the disgusting substance. In the middle of the bridge, Marc was on his knees in front of a beautiful yet alien woman. Tifa didn't realize what was so alien about the woman until the woman turned around. Tifa gasped.

"Sweet mother of god...Chimera..." Jess mumbled.

"How sweet of you to join your lover and I in time to see his death, Pretty." Tifa realized that the Chimera was speaking directly to her mind similarly to the dragons.

"She's telepathic. Be careful of what you think right now." The Chimera was smiling a sweet, dangerous smile.

"No, no, no, Pretty, I am not the Chimera. I am the Sea Sprite, born of the union of the Chimera and the Wyrm of Iraiah."


	12. The Voyage

Disclaimer: Anything from the game is not mine.

Chapter 12: The Voyage

Melody finally ended her long trek across the ocean at an island that was mostly desert. She looked at her watch and smiled. At the rate she was going, Valeria and whoever else decided to follow her would have trouble following her, even with the Invisible Ship if they somehow got permission to ride the best ship they have.

She dismounted Nellie and gave Nellie a gracious pat on her neck. She rummaged through her rather disorganized sack and made a sound as she found the bunch of Sylkis Greens she brought. She fed some to Nellie and pulled out a magic materia. This was one she knew belonged to her mother because her sister couldn't use it when she tried so many years ago. She cast a disillusioning spell on Nellie to make sure that no one would try to steal her as she walked to the spring. Luckily, Nellie was able to go to the oasis that was in the center of the island. As Melody was drinking from the spring, she heard a low chuckle from behind her.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Melody," an equally low and musical voice said. Melody turned around to see nothing.

"P-Pearl?" she exclaimed.

"Right here," Pearl offered. She was standing to the right of Melody, wearing a thin silver robe. "What, may I ask, are you doing so far away from your chilly continent?"

"Ohh...about that..." Melody thought about whether or not to tell Pearl about the rune. As soon as she thought that, Melody's eyes widened as she realized that Pearl read/heard that thought. Pearl raised an eyebrow and took a seat by Melody.

"Ah, so you're going to fulfill your destiny, eh? And why, might I ask, are you trying to do that?"

"Cloud Strife is...sick. I need it to heal him." Both of Pearl's eyebrows were raised as she flicked back her extremely long hair.

"Are you sure?" When Melody looked at Pearl's eyes, she started to have doubts. "The rune may be used for...bodily purposes. Your magic, on the other hand..." Pearl trailed off.

"What magic?"

"You have been neglecting your training, I see. Well, follow me and bring your chocobo." Melody made Nellie reappear and took her chocobo by the reins to follow Pearl.

Pearl walked to a peculiar looking palm tree and knocked on it in some sort of a special knock. Melody watched, transfixed, as the empty desert surrounding her was replaced with a large camp of tents. Pearl walked along and stopped in front of a large clearing.

"The ground beyond here is sacred, for this is where the Tower of Healing is. Regulation is to take off your foot apparel, although visitors that are not used to the heat are not required to." Melody watched as Pearl slipped out of her sandals and they disappeared. Pearl gave her a quick smile before continuing the walk. Soon enough, the seemingly endless heat waves were replaced by a totem pole looking structure that had various carvings and paintings of some people and things.

They walked to the stairs leading to the entrance of the tower and Pearl clapped twice.

"Yes sage?" two young-looking girls in crimson robes chorused.

"Take this chocobo to the stables. Be sure to feed and/or give her some water."

"Yes sage," the two girls chorused again. They bowed and led Nellie off. Pearl continued through the tower and entered a large chamber that must be her room.

"Okay then, sit upon one of those mats while I make us some tea." Pearl busied herself at a stove.

Melody sat down upon one of the mats, and when Pearl offered her a cup of tea, she hesitated. The last time (which was the first time) she drank tea made by Pearl, the stuff was some sort of hypnotizing liquid that effectively knocked her out. Pearl took a short drink out of her own cup.

"People of the Lemii race naturally have healing powers, powers much stronger than all the Sparxians combined. As a part Lemii, you too have strong healing powers." Pearl smiled her enchanting smile. "So you're not going to drink the tea?"

Melody finally shrugged and drunk the whole cup of tea. Immediately, she felt some sort of a calming effect on her body. Her eyelids suddenly felt heavy and she closed them. She opened them and she was in a white room. She heard rich, lilting laugh from behind her.

"My, my, that was a lot to drink at once." Melody turned around. "Ah, ah, in front of you." Melody turned around again to find herself face to face with Pearl. "Think about that Cloud character, and see how you feel." Melody did a Pearl suggested, and she felt something in her feet tingle.

"What was that?" Melody asked.

"That was the spell you need to use. Try it again, only this time try to focus a little more." Melody tried again, focusing all her strength into the thought. She felt the tingles overcome her whole body and she finally stopped focusing and she felt a power escape her body. She opened her eyes and found herself lying down on the floor. She stood up.

"Welcome back, Melody. You know what you have to do, don't you?" Pearl asked. Melody nodded. "Good. You can continue the rune's voyage, and try not to neglect your healing voyage this time." Melody nodded as Pearl got up from her seat and led her out of the tower.

A/N: sorry this chapter was taking so long to post. I hate it when that happens and I bet you do too. I had difficult classes this past school year and I've been busy with some school-related activities. Besides, I've had a massive writer's block and that's why this chapter was short. I was originally going to continue the other half of the last chapter, but I decided to continue with Melody's quest.


	13. The End

Disclaimer: Anything from the game is not mine.

Chapter 13: The Sea Sprite's Enchantments II and Aftermath

Kreutz looked at the Sea Sprite. "Uhh, Tifa, I have some good and bad news."

'Say the good news first,' Tifa thought.

"Well, the good news is that the Wyrm of Iraiah is one of the spawns of a particular type of water dragon that is relatively easy to defeat. Unfortunately, the Chimera is supposedly invincible. The only way we'll be able to tell which one the sprite is more like is if you actually summon us."

"Which, I'm sure that Kreutz here has emphasized, is very, very, VERY difficult," Jess added in.

"Right." Tifa suddenly stopped sensing Kreutz. "But I think that she's up to it. She's definitely more powerful than she thinks, and possibly more powerful than we think. Plus she's a quick learner." Jess also disappeared.

"Yeah, but what if it's the Chimera? What then?"

"Well, I guess we can only hope that it's the Wyrm. If not..." Kreutz trailed.

"If not, then we are ALL beef jerky." Jess finished. Both dragons reappeared.

'Well?' Tifa thought.

"Well, We'll give it a shot," Jess said.

"You just do the focus thingy while Jess and I do the rest," Kreutz informed.

'Alright,' Tifa thought back. She started to do the "focus thingy" and she felt something that started in her stomach and was going out in all directions. Finally, it erupted, and she saw the dragons.

'Oh, shhh..." Jess yelled in a panicked voice.

'Huh, what?' Tifa asked him before he could finish the word.

'It's the Chimera,' Kreutz said sadly. 'Oh well, let's just see what happens when we cast twin flames.'

'Futile, futile I say!' However, Jess complied. Kreutz floated up in the air a little and landed on Jess' shoulders. Both of them had their color fireball charging in their mouths, and when they unleashed the flames, a yellow colored light surrounded it and all three shot straight through the Sprite/Chimera, who gave a painful sounding scream.

'What in the...' Jess trailed, too shocked to say anything else.

'Isn't she invincible?' Kreutz asked.

"Looks like I came in time," a voice said from the doors. Tifa and Maverick's heads shot towards the doors. Sure enough, Melody was casually leaning against the wall directly next to the doors. "It seems like you missed me, eh?" She seemed completely relaxed. She looked at her nails before casually snapping her fingers, which caused the Sprite to disappear and the bridge to be clean. She stood up straighter. She started skipping towards Tifa. "Look at what I got!" She jumped, landing in front of Tifa and held up a gold colored stone in her right hand. In her left hand, she made a V sign. "V for Victory! Well, aren't you gonna give me a congratulatory hug?" She held her arms out to Tifa, and they hugged like long lost friends.

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"I bet you wanna know what happened to me, right?" Melody asked Tifa and Yuffie. The trio was in the latter two's bedroom. "As you no doubt heard, I went after the golden rune. We, and when I say we I mean Nellie and I, stopped at what wound up being Pearl's island and we learned a few things."

"Like what?" Yuffie asked.

"The golden rune is used for strictly resurrecting, although it also harnesses a power that strengthens the wielder. If I were against the Sea Sprite by myself, I wouldn't have been able to defeat her. But then again, if I hadn't been there, what would have happened to everyone on the ship? I would've become devastated, and that's pretty difficult for me to say. Everyone, and I mean everyone, that I care about nowadays would have been gone. Anyway, on a brighter topic, the good news is that I could heal Cloud now."

"Really?" She had both girls' attention now. They were leaning forward.

"Really, really. But, I can't concentrate with people there. So I should get going and hurry up and sneak in there, since the healing people are on lunch. See ya!" Melody disappeared in a flash of bright light.

"That must be how she got on the ship in the first place," Yuffie said. "So what's gonna happen to Cloud?"

"What do you mean what's gonna happen to him? Melody is going to heal him and then he will go back to Midgar."

"But what about you?" Yuffie asked. "I know that you are in love with that Maverick guy and whatever, but what's gonna happen to you?"

Tifa paused, unable to answer that question.

"See? Are you gonna stay with him or, are you going back to Kalm, or what?" Yuffie stood up. "Subconsciously, we have a big problem on our hands. When Cloud wakes up in a few, do we just go back and forget everything that's happened? Does anyone else worry about this stuff?"

"You know Yuffie, what happened to you after the war? You seem a lot different, a lot more mature..."

"Yeah, well, just because I was a thieving rat doesn't mean that I still am." Yuffie paused. "Okay, maybe I still steal a little, but I remember trying to steal from this one guy. He certainly looked rich, and believe me, I later found out that he was, but he was like, psychic or something. Just as I was reaching his gil pouch from behind, he grabbed my hand."

Flashback...

"What are you, a little thief?" the man asked with a raised eyebrow, her wrist still in his powerful grip. He examined her face, and in his scrutiny she looked down. "Hmm...Wutanese, large materia pouch, travelling clothes, you must be Yuffie Kisaragi, aren't you?"

Yuffie looked up at him in surprise. She was even more shocked when he let go of her arm.

"Listen, little girl, you go and steal from people that have too much money to know what to do with it. This money needs to be for something else." He rummaged through the pocket of his loose jeans. "You can use this." He pulled out a 100,000 gil note out of his pocket and held it out to her. She just stared at it. "What, so you don't want to use it? Okay then." He moved his hand to put the note back into his pocket but she stopped him.

"No, no, I could use it...as long as it isn't out of pity," she said casually. The man's dark eyebrows were raised and his golden colored eyes flashed as he grinned.

"Don't worry, Miss Kisaragi, I can assure you it's not out of pity. It's just to help finance. If you need any more help with finances, then be sure to call the Turks and ask for Auron." He laughed as he walked away.

End flashback...

"The Turks?" Tifa asked.

"Yeah, the Turks. They actually have a nice person working for the Turks," Yuffie replied.

"What do they do nowadays?"

"I dunno, I think they're kinda like mercenaries now. You know, anything for the right price."

"Do you think that that Auron person exists for real?" Tifa asked suddenly. She had a crafty smile on her face. Yuffie pulled out her PHS.

"Let's check." Both girls burst out laughing.

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Melody reappeared in the lab/clinic in a golden bubble. She smiled. Empty, just as expected. She went to the bed that Cloud was on. Of course, his hair was messy and the front half was drenched in sweat. She concentrated.

She felt the tingle, and when it escaped, she opened her eyes. She saw something that looked like a glowing seed enter Cloud's body, and when it did, he screamed in pain.

"Relax, buddy," Melody muttered. He stopped screaming and then he opened his eyes carefully.

"T-Tifa?" He asked, his voice and eyes a bit unfocused.

"No, not her. The name's Melody, Melody Solheart." Gradually, his eyes became focused. She smiled as she pushed some of his hair off of his face.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"You are in Uriah, the capitol of the Cetra's land." Cloud tried to sit up.

"Cetra?" He struggled to sit up.

"Woah, relax, buddy. You've been out of it for a long time, you don't need to move more than you have to." Melody gently pushed him back down by his shoulders. "Listen, I have to go now. You be a good patient for my big sis, alright?"

"Okay," Cloud replied, closing his eyes. Melody smiled to herself as she teleported away.

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A blonde woman with blue eyes raised her eyebrows as the Turks' phone rang. She answered, wondering who would call this early in the morning. "The Turk's Headquarters, Heather speaking."

"Hi, mah name is Ruby and ah'm lookin' for a boy named Auron," a country person said on the other line.

"Alright, Miss Ruby, I'll get him on the phone." Heather walked upstairs to Auron's room. Luckily, he wakes up even earlier than herself. She knocked on the door.

"What?" he asked.

"Yo Auron, some chick named Ruby's calling for ya!" Auron opened the door, and Heather was (again) struck by how drop dead gorgeous the guy is.

"Alright." He took the phone from Heather and walked into his room. "Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Auron, my name is Tifa Lockheart."

"Okay, and what may I ask is the reason for this phone call?"

"A friend of mine named Yuffie was wondering if you'd meet her one day to talk about your business proposal together...?"

"Actually, this week's not a good time, since we have a huge job. Maybe next week, or the week after that."

"Okay. That would be fine."

"Oh, and Tifa?"

"Yes?"

"It's just Auron, not Mr., okay?"

"Okay." Tifa grinned. "Have a nice day, Auron."

"Same to you." Auron looked at the phone curiously.

---

Tifa laughed as she hung up the phone. Soon Yuffie joined in.

"Oh... my... gawd!" Yuffie said between laughter.

When things finally calmed down, Tifa was the first to speak. "I guess your mystery man's still interested." She grinned at Yuffie cheekily. "If his face is as good as his voice, he must be a hottie to an extreme level." To her surprise, Yuffie's face flushed.

"You can say that."

"Oooh... Yuffie has a crush, Yuffie has a crush!" Tifa sang. She laughed some more. "Well, Yuffie, I'm glad that you found a guy worth having a crush on." At this, Yuffie laughed.

---

Melody reappeared right outside of Maverick's room. She knocked on the door.

"Come in," he called. She entered.

"Mavy, old buddy, I need to ask you a big, big favor." He paused.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeppers. I need to see that Aeris chick." Maverick turned and raised an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"Please, pretty please?" Melody asked, her face instantly transforming to an innocent puppy face.

"Fine."

"Did I mention that I have to see her alone?" Maverick raised both of his eyebrows.

"I probably shouldn't let you, but I'm gonna anyway. Just go into that elevator, and go down."

"Okay." Melody skipped to the elevator and rode down. "Aeris, oh Aeris!" she called.

"Yes?" Aeris asked as she appeared.

"My name's Melody, and I'm here to give you a new lease on life!" Melody held up the Golden Rune and closed her eyes. When she reopened them, she put her arm in Aeris' arm and walked towards the elevator. "Just call me your fairy godmother!" Melody exclaimed as they went up.

A/N: Well, I guess this ends this story. I'm going to write a sequel, though, called The Angle. Should I write it about the Turks, continue with a little bit more Tifa and Yuffie (but more Yuffie) or write it about Vincent? Please answer in your review. I want to know if I am a good enough writer to write a sequel. I'm gonna have to be motivated, though. Plus school starts on August 9, so I don't have much summer vacation time. Stay tuned for more.


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